STEPHEN OLIVER FROM WOOTTON BASSETT SENTENCED FOR CHILD SEX ABUSE IN DEVIZES AND SWINDON

In a case that has shocked the community of Wootton Bassett and surrounding areas, Stephen Oliver, a resident of Clarendon Drive in Wootton Bassett, has been sentenced to three years in prison for the sexual abuse of a young girl dating back to the late 1970s. The disturbing incident involved Oliver, who was approximately 16 years old at the time, taking advantage of his role as a babysitter to commit heinous acts against a seven-year-old girl.

The court proceedings revealed that Oliver entered the girl’s bedroom during a babysitting session and told her he was going to 'teach her something.' Without warning, he proceeded to carry out a sexual assault, which included him putting his tongue in her mouth in a French kiss and then undressing her to encourage her to touch him. The victim, now a woman in her 40s, recounted that after the first incident, she told Oliver she did not want to do it again, and he never repeated the abuse. However, the trauma of those events lingered with her for decades.

The victim came forward in 2015, prompted by media coverage related to the Jimmy Savile case, which brought to light many similar allegations of abuse. She explained that during her childhood, Oliver would babysit her when her parents went out, and he would often come upstairs to her bedroom, claiming he was going to 'teach her a lesson.' She described how he would kiss her inappropriately and then undress her, encouraging her to touch him. The girl, at the time, was too young to fully understand the gravity of what was happening, but she later confided in an older neighbor, which led her to tell her parents.

In response to the allegations, her parents sought legal advice, and a solicitor friend of the family wrote a warning letter to Oliver’s family, cautioning him to stay away. During police questioning, Oliver, who has also worked as a foster carer, denied any wrongdoing and even claimed he had never babysat the girl. Despite his denials, the jury at Swindon Crown Court found him guilty of two counts of indecent assault and two counts of gross indecency with a child after a week-long trial involving seven women and five men.

The victim, in her victim personal statement, expressed how the abuse had profoundly affected her life. She described how she has become overprotective of her own children and how the trauma has persisted into her adult life. The court heard that Oliver’s actions robbed her of a significant part of her childhood, and the judge, Judge Jason Taylor QC, emphasized that Oliver exploited his position of trust to satisfy his own sexual desires. The judge also pointed out that the victim’s parents’ letter from 1984, claiming that the abuse had not left any lasting mental scars, was entirely false.

In addition to the prison sentence, Oliver was ordered to register as a sex offender for life. His defense argued that the conviction would result in him losing his home, leaving his wife and child to find alternative accommodation. However, the judge made it clear that the severity of Oliver’s actions warranted strict punishment, reflecting the serious nature of the crimes committed in Wootton Bassett and the surrounding areas.