NICHOLAS WHITMORE OF STALYBRIDGE SENTENCED FOR SEXUAL OFFENSES INVOLVING A 14-YEAR-OLD IN WARRINGTON

In January 2004, a man from Stalybridge was convicted of engaging in sexual activity with a 14-year-old girl from Warrington after grooming her online. Nicholas Whitmore, aged 41, residing on Gledhill Street in Stalybridge, had initiated communication with the underage girl over the Internet during the previous year.

Warrington Crown Court was told that during their online conversations, the pair exchanged phone numbers, expressed care for each other, and discussed having sex. Prosecutor Maria Masselis stated: “During the summer holidays they mutually decided to meet. The defendant collected her from her home in a camper van and drove them to the countryside.”

The first face-to-face meeting resulted in them holding hands and kissing. On their subsequent meetings, they engaged in full sexual intercourse, and continued to have sex on several occasions. Ms. Masselis added that there were discussions about marriage between them.

The relationship was exposed when the girl confided in her friends at school, and the friends reported the matter to a teacher.

Defending Whitmore, Nicola Daley remarked that he acknowledges the immorality of his actions and feels remorseful.

Whitmore, who had previous convictions as a sex offender, pleaded guilty in Warrington Magistrates’ Court in November to three counts of unlawful sexual intercourse and a count of failing to notify police of his change of address.

At Warrington Crown Court, Judge David Hale addressed the seriousness of the case, stating: “These are very serious offences and I have little doubt that it was on your part grooming. In the end she became emotionally dependent on you and you were happy to have a relationship with her. It was wholly consensual, but a situation that you had engineered.”

Already registered as a sex offender, Whitmore was sentenced to three and a half years in prison, with half of that to be served. Additionally, Judge Hale imposed a restraining order prohibiting him from using chat rooms on the Internet, seeking to contact or communicate with anyone under 16, or associating with individuals under that age.