School governor who bought lifelike child sex doll is jailed

A former school governor and churchwarden has been jailed for 16 months for importing a lifelike child sex doll – in one of the first cases of its kind in the country.

David Turner, 72, also had more than 30,000 sex images of children at his Ramsgate home.

Now Judge Simon James told him he was one of the people fuelling the rape and serious sexual abuse of children, because of his appetite for looking at child abuse images.

Turner, a churchgoer and former school governor, pleaded guilty to importing the £1,000 child sex toy from China.

Canterbury Crown Court heard how he had three dolls at his home, which he dressed in children’s clothes and had sex with at least two of them.

The judge told him: “The word ‘doll’ does not adequately convey what you imported. It is difficult to convey just how lifelike and repugnant they are. You have gone to significant lengths to attempt to satisfy your perversions.”

National Crime Agency officers arrested Turner in November after a parcel with a 3ft doll in it was intercepted from China.

Turner’s home was raided and the charge relates to doll already in his possession and which he had bought clothes for.

In interview, Turner said his preference was to view indecent images of children aged four to 10 and he admittedly secretly taking photographs of girls aged six to 11 in public places.

After being arrested Turner resigned as a school governor of St Ethelbert’s Church Primary School in Margate and from St Ethelbert and Gertrude Church where he was a churchwarden.