Child rapist from Leeds who abused six-year-old girl jailed for more than 20 years
An ageing paedophile has been brought to justice 30 years after he began sexually abusing a young girl.
David Lawn was found guilty after a trial at Leeds Crown Court of 16 offences, including rape.
He was handed a 21-year extended jail sentence.
A lengthy impact statement written by the victim was summarised to the court by Judge Penelope Belcher, who described it as “powerful and moving”.
The woman said she “feels like the frightened child has finally been heard”.
She said that she “became a child that scanned a room for danger,” having “learned fear before learning safety”.
She added that she had “felt unlovable and unimportant all her life”.
The court heard that the abuse began the 1990s when the youngster was just five, and went on for around six years.
It was heard that Lawn began by touching the child over her clothing and kissing her.
He then progressed to putting his hands under her clothing before forcing her into degrading sex acts and rape.
The terrified youngster tried to tell her family but was not believed.
It was only years later that the victim came forward having suffered years of torment.
Lawn, of St John’s Garth, Aberford, denied the matters and was taken to trial in January.
He was found guilty of 12 counts of indecent assault, two of indecency with a child and two of rape.
The 62-year-old appeared in court over a video link from HMP Leeds, where he has been held on remand since the verdict.
Judge Belcher gave him a 20-year jail sentence, with a one-year extended licence period.
He was put on the sex offender register for the rest of his life.
Detective Constable Christine Walkin, who led the investigation, said: “Lawn subjected a vulnerable young girl to a campaign of sickening abuse and this has understandably had a significant impact on her life.
“Following a lengthy investigation we were able to obtain enough evidence to secure an extensive list of charges against Lawn, all of which he has now been convicted of.
“I would like to recognise the immense courage shown by the victim throughout the investigation and court proceedings. I hope the knowledge that Ward will now spend a substantial amount of time behind bars will provide some comfort as she works hard to move on with her life.
“I also hope the successful outcome in this case might encourage any victims of similar offences to please come forward and report them to us.
“We treat all sexual offences, recent or not, extremely seriously. We have specialist officers who can support you through the process and will do everything we can to get justice for you.”