MICHAEL DICKSON, FORMER SEA CADET LEADER, JAILED IN CROYDON FOR ABUSING VULNERABLE CHILD

In September 2017, Michael Dickson, a former Sea Cadet leader from Orpington, was sentenced at Croydon Crown Court for multiple indecent assaults on a vulnerable young boy. Dickson, aged 44 at the time, received a custodial sentence of eight years and was also issued a sexual harm prevention order.

He had previously pleaded guilty on August 7 at the same court to five counts of indecent assault, with three additional counts to be left on file. The court heard that the assaults occurred between 1992 and 2003, starting when the victim was just 13 years old and continuing into his adulthood.

The victim reported the abuse to police in December 2014, prompting an immediate investigation. Dickson was arrested on February 25, 2015; he denied the allegations during his arrest. He was formally charged on June 13, 2017. Following his arrest, Dickson was suspended from the Sea Cadets and has since been expelled from the organization.

Reacting to the conviction, Detective Constable Mark Tarrant of the Metropolitan Police’s Child Abuse and Sexual Offences Command said: “I would like to acknowledge the courage of the victim in coming forward. He is now aged in his 30s and has coped for many years with a great deal of psychological stress due to the abuse that he suffered. Dickson abused his position of trust and groomed a vulnerable boy in order to abuse him. Anyone who has been affected by non-recent sexual offences can be assured that all allegations are fully investigated and every effort will be made to bring offenders to justice.”