PAUL KELLY, DUBLINER, SENTENCED IN LONDON FOR PREDATORY SEXUAL OFFENSES AND DRUG GROOMING

In November 2005, Dublin-born Paul Kelly was sentenced to eight years in prison in London for a series of heinous crimes involving young girls. Kelly, aged 62 at the time, had concealed his true identity behind an ordinary appearance while secretly acting as a sexual predator. His victims primarily included 12-year-old girls, whom he manipulated by introducing them to cocaine and other drugs as part of his grooming process for predatory purposes.

Kelly's arrest came after a sophisticated police operation involving surveillance and bugging of his flat and BMW, conducted in a manner likened to anti-terrorist tactics. Authorities suspect that Kelly abused numerous girls between the ages of 10 and 14 over the course of a decade.

At London’s Middlesex Guildhall Crown Court, Kelly pleaded guilty to four charges related to a 12-year-old girl: grooming her for sexual purposes, indecent assault, supplying cocaine, and offering to supply drugs. He resided in Guinness Close, Hayes, Middlesex.

During court proceedings, it was revealed that Kelly staged himself as a grotesque Santa Claus, giving gifts such as sportswear and food to the families of vulnerable girls around Christmas. His home was transformed into a juvenile’s paradise, featuring a £2,500 television and video games, which he used as tools to lure children. He provided mobile phones to the girls and encouraged them to call him "uncle Joe."

Outside the courtroom, Detective Chief Inspector Matt Sarti of Scotland Yard’s Paedophile Unit described Kelly as an "extremely ruthless man who preyed on vulnerable children and families," emphasizing that his decision to supply cocaine to a 12-year-old illustrated his willingness to go to great lengths to groom and abuse children.

The judge informed Kelly that he would serve the first four years of his sentence in prison, with the remaining four on license. The police surveillance, initiated in February, resulted in Kelly's arrest less than a month later. Prosecutor Michael Corkery QC stated that numerous young girls, many of them 13, consistently visited Kelly’s flat during this period.

A significant incident on March 5 involved a 12-year-old girl who ran away from her difficult home environment and was picked up by Kelly in his BMW. He inappropriately touched her over her clothing and supplied her with cocaine, demonstrating how thoroughly he groomed her.

During his arrest, authorities discovered a stockpile of illegal substances like Viagra, cannabis, and amphetamines, along with child-related items such as 20 soft toys, pink nail varnish, a pair of pajamas belonging to a 12-year-old girl, and a love letter from a 14-year-old girl. Kelly’s criminal record includes 36 thefts, previous jail terms of six years for burglary, six years for drug offenses, and an eight-year sentence in France for drug-related crimes in 1990.