JUNE ENTECOTT FROM CHATHAM SENTENCED FOR COVER-UP AND CHILD ABUSE IN KENT AND LONDON

In a case that has shocked the local community and brought to light long-standing allegations of abuse and cover-up, 80-year-old June Entecott from Chatham has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison. The conviction follows her involvement in concealing her police officer husband’s historic abuse of their two adopted daughters, as well as her own acts of cruelty towards one of the girls.

Entecott was found guilty of multiple charges, including perverting the course of justice and child cruelty. Specifically, she was convicted of using a dog lead to whip one of the girls, an act that was described as brutal and deeply disturbing. She was acquitted of physically abusing the other child. During the sentencing, Entecott appeared visibly distressed, shaking her head and protesting her innocence, claiming, “I can’t believe this, how can you be guilty of something you never done. I have done nothing and I’m getting guilty. I never done anything.”

The case revealed that Entecott, along with her half-sister Brenda Ball, 71, had actively lied to prevent the prosecution of PC John Hudson, a police officer who served on the Metropolitan Police’s Vice Squad. Hudson was accused of sexually abusing the two adopted girls, Marina Narayan and Shelagh Largan, during the 1960s and 1970s. Despite the allegations, Hudson was never brought to justice and died in 2008. The authorities at the time chose to “brush under the carpet” the abuse allegations, which allowed Hudson to evade accountability for many years.

Marina Narayan, who was just six years old when the abuse began, recounted her suffering, describing how her experiences were ignored and dismissed by the authorities. Meanwhile, Shelagh Largan endured a “living hell” at the hands of Entecott and her husband. Both Entecott and Ball were convicted by a jury at Southwark Crown Court of perverting the course of justice by covering up the abuse to help PC Hudson avoid prosecution.

Judge Nicholas Loraine-Smith addressed the court, describing the case as “very disturbing.” He sentenced Entecott to four and a half years, emphasizing the pattern of behavior that showed her prioritizing her own interests over the well-being of the victims. The judge stated, “The jury were sure that your husband John Hudson sexually assaulted Marina Narayan and Shelagh Largan, and they were sure that you, his then wife, knew about it following your discovery of Marina on his knee. They also believed you did what you could to keep those sexual assaults hidden from the outside world.”

He further criticized Entecott’s duplicity, noting her outward appearance of a loving and caring person contrasted sharply with her cruelty towards the girls. The judge highlighted her efforts to prevent the truth from emerging, only for the determination of Marina Narayan to eventually bring the case to court.

In contrast, Brenda Ball received a more lenient sentence—a suspended eight-month jail term—after the court acknowledged her love for the girls and her being “bullied” into hiding the abuse by her sister. The judge remarked, “You loved them and they loved you, it’s a huge pity that you chose to conceal the truth about John Hudson to the police in September 1999.”

During the sentencing, family members of Entecott and Ball shouted abuse at Marina Narayan, with some screaming “rot in hell” and “it’s a disgrace.” The prosecutor, Toby FitzGerald, recounted how allegations made by Marina in 1979 were ignored by authorities at the time, and how, despite a police investigation in 1999 following new complaints from both victims, PC Hudson was not prosecuted due to the cover-up efforts of Entecott and Ball.

Marina Narayan, now 50, spoke out publicly after the trial, criticizing Lambeth Council and the Metropolitan Police for their past failures to take her allegations seriously. She expressed her hope that her courage in coming forward would inspire other victims to seek justice. She revealed that she first reported the abuse in 1979 as a 13-year-old, only to be branded a liar, and lamented the authorities’ neglect. She also thanked the police and Crown Prosecution Service for their efforts in bringing her case to court.

Entecott, residing in Chatham, Kent, was sentenced to four and a half years for acts that included attempting to pervert the course of justice and child cruelty. She was cleared of a second child cruelty charge. Brenda Ball, from Orpington, Kent, received a suspended sentence of eight months, which will be served over 12 months, for her role in obstructing justice.

This case has shed light on decades of abuse and institutional neglect, highlighting the importance of justice for victims and accountability for those who attempt to cover up such heinous acts.