Man, 44, jailed for child cruelty and sex assault

A WIRRAL scout leader who indecently assaulted a boy and showed hard-core pornographic videos to others has been jailed for two years.

Sentencing John Fogg on Friday, Judge David Maddison said his victims had been vulnerable, impressionable youngsters and his behaviour involved a serious breach of trust.

"What you did to them caused them fear and embarrassment and they have enduring memories of what went on despite their best efforts to put it to the back of their minds.

"I have a duty to deter others in similar positions of responsibility from abusing their positions in the way you unhappily did," he said.

Fogg, who was leader of the 1st Great Meols Scout Troop when the offences occurred between January 1979 and July 1987, had pleaded guilty to one offence of indecent assault, three of outraging public decency and one of child cruelty.

He was ordered to register under the Sex Offenders' Register for ten years.

Liverpool Crown Court heard that 44-year-old Fogg, of Barnhey Crescent, Meols, was arrested after the allegations came to light as part of Operation Care, a police investigation into institutionalised child abuse.

Mr James Rae, prosecuting, said that the offences involved boys aged between 11 and 13.

While he and some Scouts were sleeping overnight in the Gt Meols Venture Scout hut, he sexually molested one of them, aged 11, and the boy was so upset he left the Scouts.

The other offences involved him showing hard-core pornographic videos to other young Scouts on a television beneath the flag in the scout hut.

Referring to the cruelty charge, Mr Rae said that the troop had an initiation ceremony initially involving throwing naked boys into a river but this was later changed to them having to run naked between tent pegs while their colleagues threw water over them.

Asked about this Fogg denied taking an active part in the ceremony but said he was there to ensure no one was hurt or severely distressed.

Defence counsel Mr Brian Cummings said that Fogg, a contracts manager, had pleaded guilty and spared his victims the ordeal of giving evidence in court.

He has been married for five years and had a young daughter but has financial problems and if jailed faced bankruptcy and losing their home.

Because he is now a convicted sex offender, the Social Services were now involved with the family and he was publicly disgraced, said Mr Cummings.

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