NATHAN STOTT OF TEESSIDE AVOIDS JAIL TIME AFTER GROOMING TEEN GIRLS FOR SEX
In August 2017, Nathan Stott, a 22-year-old youth worker at a church on Teesside, was convicted of grooming two teenage girls for sexual activity while working with children as young as seven.Stott, who met the girls through his role at a church that cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted to five sexual offenses involving the girls, aged 13 and 15.
At Teesside Crown Court, the judge acknowledged that sentencing Stott to prison was a difficult decision, stating, "It is not an easy decision not to send him to prison, and some members of the public might criticize me for it." A psychiatrist and pre-sentence report noted that Stott, who was 20 at the time, lacked insight into the harm he caused; both girls are now receiving counseling.
One victim described Stott as having "an air of childishness," the court heard.
Prosecutor Harry Hadfield explained that Stott used social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat to communicate with the girls, exchanging messages and indecent photos.
He asked one girl if she wanted to have sex, and invited the other to watch him perform a sex act, which she did.
One girl’s mother discovered explicit messages from Stott on her daughter’s phone, confronted him, and contacted police in January of the previous year.
Further investigations revealed that Stott sent a girl a message expressing her discomfort with his inappropriate touching.
Authorities seized his laptop and mobile phone, which contained Skype chat logs with other girls and Google searches for child abuse imagery on known sites.
Prosecutor Hadfield mentioned that one mother received a Facebook message from her daughter explaining why she had not disclosed Stott’s behavior.
During the trial, the older girl provided evidence via videolink, stating she was now struggling academically and unable to sleep because she imagined Stott prowling around her house.
She said, "I don’t like going to church anymore, although I used to go twice on Sunday." The other girl, who had also sent Stott naked pictures, explained that she stopped attending church after parents warned their children to stay away from him.
Judge Tony Briggs sentenced Stott to a 12-month jail term, suspended for two years, with a rehabilitation order lasting 30 months.
He also imposed an indefinite Sexual Offence Prevention Order restricting Stott’s activities and ordered him to register as a sex offender for 10 years.
Stott admitted to three counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.
The judge commented, “It may well be that members of the public would think that in your position to engage in sexual conduct with a child, there would be automatic custody.
They are perfectly entitled to hold that.” He acknowledged Stott’s mental health issues, stating, “Stott has obsessive compulsive disorder, and it is very far from usual.” Concluding, Judge Briggs said, “It is disgraceful to behave in such a way, but ultimately I have to decide the length of the sentence and whether to suspend it.
I find this a very difficult decision, and those offended by your actions may see it as an injustice.”
