A paedophile from Sefton has been jailed for 14 years for multiple child sex offences
A Southport man has been jailed on Monday 23 October, for 14 years for multiple child sex offences against a girl.
David Eyre, 55 years, of Southport was sentenced to 14 years in prison and five years on licence at Liverpool Crown Court after pleading guilty in September to multiple sexual offences towards a child.
Following a long investigation by the Online Child Abuse Investigation Team (OCAIT) at Merseyside Police, detectives charged Eyre with child sex offences including assaulting a girl under 13 by penetration and touching, and three counts of taking indecent photographs and possessing indecent images which took place between 2021 and 2023.
Detective Inspector Victoria Tinsley from OCAIT said: “Initially, a warrant was issued against Eyre and following a search of his home we seized electronic devices which upon examination were found to contain explicit sexual photographs of a child."
“This then led our investigation to uncovering more sickening and depraved acts against a child committed by Eyre."
“He pleaded guilty to the offences because the evidence was so strong against him.”
Merseyside Police works with other UK forces, agencies and the Child Exploitation Online Protection centre as well as law enforcement agencies across the world who share our determination to protect children from dangerous offenders online.
Detective Inspector Tinsley added: “Merseyside Police is completely committed to bringing child sex offenders before the courts, no matter how long ago the abuse took place."
“We have specialist officers within our Online Child Abuse Investigations team who are dedicated to investigating these crimes, bringing those responsible before the courts and ultimately protecting young people from unimaginable suffering."
“Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to stress that if you have experienced any form of sexual abuse, or know of a child being abused, please come forward and report this to police."
“We take all such reports extremely seriously and if you can find the courage to come forward and speak to us we have specially trained officers who will treat you with sensitivity and compassion.”
Here is a guide by Merseyside Police and The National Crime Agency's CEOP Education team on how to help protect children and young people from online child sexual abuse:
If you are a child or young person suffering sexual or physical abuse, the following organisations can also provide help and support:
NSPCC – call 0808 800 5000 or e-mail help@nspcc.org.uk.
Childline – call 0800 1111
If you’ve been affected by sexual violence of any kind don’t be afraid to tell someone, find the courage to come forward and get the help you deserve.
You can report rape, sexual assault and other sexual offences anonymously here: https://orlo.uk/qYRKN
There is a lot of support available from specialist officers within Merseyside Police and through the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Victim Care Merseyside service delivered jointly by two registered charities.
In Liverpool, Sefton and Wirral, support is provided by Rape and Sexual Abuse Support (RASA) Merseyside who are available on 0151 558 1801 and, in St Helens and Knowsley, by the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre (RASASC) Cheshire and Merseyside who can be contacted on 01925 221 546 or 0330 363 0063.
