RALPH MAUGER, FORMER JERSEY CENTENIER, REMAINS JAILED FOR CHILD SEXUAL OFFENCES

In March 2013, Ralph Mauger, a 77-year-old former Jersey Centenier, was reaffirmed to be behind bars after losing his appeal against his convictions and sentencing for child sex crimes. During the court proceedings, Mauger was observed shaking his head, holding his face in one hand, and rubbing his lips as details of the allegations were disclosed.

The court recalled Mauger’s statement to one young victim where he claimed, “I kissed you on the boobs but I did not interfere with you.” The appeal centered on six key grounds, including Mauger’s argument that because a young child does not have breasts, the charge of indecent assault should not stand. However, the appeal judges deemed his attempt to argue this point as “intolerable.”

Mauger was sentenced to two and a half years in prison after being found guilty in December 2012 and was incarcerated in January 2013. Recently, the Court of Appeal, sitting at the Royal Court, considered various arguments from his legal team aimed at overturning the guilty verdict.

He was convicted by the Royal Court on five counts of indecent assault and was ordered to register as a sex offender for five years. Advocate Stephen Baker, Mauger’s legal representative, argued that the trial judge should have ordered separate trials because the allegations from each complainant lacked similarity. He also contended that there had been inadequate disclosure of material that could have aided the defense’s cross-examination of the victims.

At the sentencing earlier this year, Judge Julian Clyde-Smith stated, “The court does not accept that all the offences can be described as isolated and this is a substantial sentence for a man of your age.” Throughout his trial, Mauger denied seven counts of indecent assault and one of inciting an act of gross indecency involving girls aged six to 14. The criminal acts occurred at a residence in Grouville between 1998 and 2006.

In a prior ruling in December 2012, Mauger was declared guilty of child sex abuse, specifically five of eight total charges. The jury found him guilty of indecently assaulting three girls and was remanded until January 16, 2013, pending sentencing. Mauger denied the allegations, which involved girls aged six to 14, and the incidents were alleged to have taken place at a house in Grouville during the specified period.

The jury reached a unanimous verdict regarding the indecent assault of Witnesses A and B and a majority verdict for Witness C. The decision was made by eight men and four women after six days of evidence, including testimonies from the three victims and character statements supporting Mauger.