RYAN HIGGINS PAIGNTON RAPIST SENTENCED AFTER ABUSING 10-YEAR-OLD GIRLS IN DEVON

In a disturbing case that has shocked the community of Paignton, Ryan Higgins was sentenced to six years in a Young Offenders’ Institution after being found guilty of heinous sexual offenses involving two young girls aged just ten years old. The incident took place when Higgins was between the ages of 15 and 17, during which he exploited the innocence of the victims and subjected them to a series of traumatic experiences that have left lasting scars.

According to court proceedings, Higgins took advantage of the girls while they were staying at a house in Paignton, where they were having a sleepover. During this time, he manipulated one of the girls into posing for an indecent photograph. The court heard that Higgins refused to delete the image from his mobile phone unless the girl complied with his further sexual demands. This act of coercion marked the beginning of a pattern of exploitation, where Higgins used the photographs and the girls’ fear of exposure to blackmail them into performing additional sexual acts on subsequent occasions.

Higgins’s actions came to light during a trial held in September, where the jury was presented with evidence of his abuse. The court was told that Higgins had taken explicit pictures of one of the girls and used these images as leverage to threaten and intimidate the victims into silence. Despite their fear and embarrassment, the girls were compelled to testify against him, revealing the extent of Higgins’s manipulation and cruelty.

During the trial, Higgins denied any sexual activity had taken place, claiming innocence and attempting to dismiss the allegations as false. However, the judge, Judge Francis Gilbert, QC, was highly critical of Higgins’s conduct. In his sentencing remarks, he emphasized the severity of the victims’ suffering, stating, “Your victims have both suffered significantly and are continuing to do so. It is not the least bit surprising and is all because of you.”

Judge Gilbert also highlighted the credibility of the victims’ testimonies, describing one of the girls as “one of the most compelling witnesses of truth I have ever seen in a long career in the courts.” He condemned Higgins for his blatant manipulation, noting that his claims of the girls “wrecking his life” were unfounded and that his actions were far from youthful experimentation. Instead, they were calculated acts of intimidation and abuse.

Higgins, of Church Street, Paignton, faced multiple charges, including two counts of rape against one girl and one count of attempted rape against the other. Throughout the proceedings, Higgins’s defense argued that he was immature at the time and has since matured, now holding a job and engaged to be married. Nonetheless, the court’s verdict reflected the gravity of his crimes and the lasting impact on the victims. The six-year sentence underscores the seriousness with which the justice system views such offenses, especially involving vulnerable minors in the community of Paignton.