MARTIN VINCENT, DEVON SCHOOL VOLUNTEER, SENTENCED FOR GROOMING AND CHILD ABUSE IN THE USA

In October 2017, Martin Vincent, a 54-year-old school volunteer from Buckfastleigh, Devon, was sentenced to prison for heinous crimes involving child exploitation and abuse in the United States.

Vincent was convicted of persuading a 12-year-old girl to perform self-abuse on camera while he watched via Skype. Police were able to identify her by enlarging the small print on prescriptions visible in the background of the recordings. This identification was crucial in confirming her age and ensuring she received appropriate support and counseling.

Authorities also discovered evidence of Vincent’s involvement with other minors, including a 15-year-old girl from New England. Police found he had accumulated more than 4,000 child abuse images and chat logs in which he attempted to drug a nine-year-old girl with Rohypnol.

During police interrogation, Vincent shockingly claimed, “It is normal. It’s only society that says it’s not. I bet there isn’t a dad out there who has not noticed his daughter and is just afraid to admit what they want.”

Further investigations uncovered chat exchanges with other abusers worldwide, in which Vincent used the online alias 'Lord Lucan.' In these communications, he expressed fantasies about abusing children and discussed arrangements to meet women where he intended to abuse their children, even offering to supply Rohypnol.

Vincent also attempted to facilitate abuse across borders. Prosecutor William Hunter stated that Vincent was traced through an email address in the name of Lord Lucan, which he used to send and receive child abuse images. He admitted to possessing 20 gigabytes of such material, including 4,177 still images and 638 videos, with some showing serious abuse or child rape.

Authorities found chat logs on Skype and other platforms revealing plans to meet with a mother in Britain to use Rohypnol on her nine-year-old daughter. They also uncovered files on Vincent’s computer containing images of 12 girls, including a girl from California whose images were identified by writing on medication bottles in her bathroom.

Vincent had organized these images into folders, with some photos depicting girls self-abusing or being abused. A second victim, a 15-year-old girl from New England, was also identified during the investigation.

Vincent, who helped organize a Summer Fair a year prior to his arrest at an independent school in South Devon, admitted multiple charges including inciting children to partake in indecent images or prostitution, making indecent images, and distributing them.

Judge Geoffrey Mercer, QC, sentenced Vincent to four years and eight months in prison. He also ordered Vincent to sign the sex offenders register for life and imposed a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, restricting his access to children and the internet upon his release.

Addressing Vincent, the judge stated, “This is a pretty extreme case. It was a horrible world that you created. Your sexual interest in young girls and children is very concerning and appears to almost have dominated your life over several years. I have to sentence you for very serious offences. They went very much further than downloading images. You distributed images and had contact with children in America. You were getting them to perform sexual acts and prostitute themselves for your benefit. One was just 12.”