November 2013 Bridgwater paedophile jailed for 26 years A PAEDOPHILE from Bridgwater has been jailed for 26 years and nine months after being found guilty of sexually abusing three young girls over a 12-year period. Tony Lock, 46, of Kendale Road, was found guilty of 18 counts of sexually abusing three girls, who were aged between 10 and 17-years-old, following a trial at Taunton Crown Court. He was convicted of offences including eight counts of rape and one count of perverting the course of justice. The offences mainly took place in the Minehead and Bridgwater areas. DC Darren Lipscomb said: “Lock is a predatory and manipulative paedophile who groomed young girls by befriending them at first before supplying them with gifts including clothes, a phone and a scooter, to gain their trust. “He then abused this trust in the most abhorrent way possible and took advantage of their vulnerability to carry out these crimes. “He met one of his victims through a church group, who he drove a minibus for, and another through a social club for people with special needs, demonstrating a clear motivation to use his position in volunteer groups to his own advantage,. “When Lock discovered one of the victims was talking to the police he even tried to intimidate her into not giving evidence by saying he would take his own life if she did. “I would like to praise the bravery of all three victims who had the strength and courage to come forward and tell police what happened to them. “I would also like to commend the officers working on this investigation who developed a relationship of trust with the victims which helped them reveal the awful crimes which they were subjected to. “This has been a complex investigation and we have worked very closely with our partners, including Somerset County Council and the Crown Prosecution Service, enabling us to secure a conviction.  “Our enquiries are very much ongoing and I would appeal to anyone else who has information relating to this inquiry to have the confidence to come forward – you will be believed, you will be listened to and we can offer you all the support you require.”