‘Dangerous predator’ who raped boys jailed
SERIAL OFFENDER ABUSED WOMEN AND CHILDREN AS YOUNG AS FOUR
A DANGEROUS predator who repeatedly raped two boys and also raped a woman has been handed a 27-year extended sentence.
Leslie Housecroft also repeatedly sexually abused a young girl and sexually assaulted a second woman.
The offences took place between the 1990s and 2016.
Leeds Crown Court heard one of the boys was as young as four or five years old when Housecroft first raped him.
After a two-week trial in March this year, the 73-year-old was found guilty of six counts of rape of a child, one count of indecent assault, one count of indecency with a child, one count of sexual assault of a child, one count of rape of a woman and four counts of sexual assault of a woman.
On Thursday, he was told he must serve two-thirds of a 26-year custodial period followed by an extended licence period of one year.
One of the adult victims, who the court was told had been sexually abused by someone else as a child, described having mental health issues including psychosis and agoraphobia as a result.
She said Housecroft had ‘controlled her life’ for three more years during the proceedings as having to give evidence in the trial brought the abuse back to her and added: “We can hopefully move on with our lives now knowing justice is served.”
Housecroft, who most recently lived in a flat in the Church of the
Nazarene on Wellington Road in Dewsbury, appeared in court via video link from jail for the sentencing hearing.
During the hearing, he said: “Not guilty.”
Judge Penelope Belcher told him to be quiet as the jury had found him guilty of the offences.
Housecroft was also made subject to a sexual harm prevention order.
Acting Det Sgt Yvonne Brear of the Kirklees District Safeguarding Unit, who led the investigation, said: “Leslie Housecroft is without doubt a dangerous serial sexual predator who committed some of the most serious sexual offences against victims over a three-decade period.
“Rather than admit his guilt, he chose to put those victims through the ordeal of a trial and we welcome the strong sentence imposed on him today.
“I wish to commend the bravery of those victims who came forward and supported both the police investigation and then the prosecution to ensure this man was taken out of our communities.
“We are committed to achieving justice for victims of sexual offending, no matter when those offences took place, and can promise their needs are at the heart of every investigation.”