EX-CHIP SHOP MANAGER MICHAEL CHRISTIE OF PENRITH JAILED FOR SEXUAL OFFENCES WITH SCHOOLGIRL

In July 2010, Michael John Christie, aged 42 and formerly of Mill Street, Penrith, was sentenced to four and a half years in prison for engaging in a three-year sexual relationship with a schoolgirl. During the court hearing at Carlisle Crown Court, Christie was also ordered to register as a sex offender andmentally barred from having any unsupervised contact with children indefinitely.

Christie was convicted in May following a trial that found him guilty on three charges of indecent assault against the girl, who was 13 at the time, and six charges of sexual activity with her when she was aged 14 or 15. The court noted some of these charges served to illustrate the pattern of his alleged behavior during that period.

The trial revealed that Christie, who previously managed a chip shop in Angel Lane and worked as a part-time fireman, began to manipulate the girl when she was just 13. He had his first sexual encounter with her when she was 14, continuing the relationship until she was 17, a point at which she realized it was not a genuine love story but an exploitative relationship.

The victim, now an adult, testified that she often skipped school to meet him at his home, his chip shop, or during trips to the countryside in his car. She also disclosed that Christie took photographs of her partially clothed and liked to record her performing sexual acts, some of which she only disclosed to police years later after he refused to return the compromising images.

Christie, who stepped down from managing the chip shop in 2007 to train as a driving instructor, claimed that the allegations against him were false and merely part of the girl’s “fantasising.”

During sentencing, defence lawyer Keith Thomas acknowledged that although Christie initially denied wrongdoing, he now accepted the impact his actions had on the girl’s life. Judge Barbara Forrester commented on the case, stating, “It was clear the girl was flattered by your attention,” but added, “She thought she was in a loving relationship with you, but it is quite clear you were exploiting her for sexual activity.”