Sir Tom Queen’s honour is special
Newly knighted Captain Sir Tom Moore has said being presented with the honour by the Queen was “something very special”.
He wa s per sona l ly thanked by the Queen for raising an “amazing amount of money” for the NHS.
Sir Tom said he was “absolutely overawed” to receive the knighthood at Windsor Castle.
It came in recognition of him walking laps of the garden at his Bedfordshire home in the run-up to his 100th birthday, raising £ 33million.
He told BBC Breakfast: “You never ever could imagine what it was like to be so close to the Queen, who is an absolute dream of a person.
“We rea l ly enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.”
Campaigner Ian Haworth said Derek Lincoln should assist detectives in identifying more offenders.
Ian, who heads the Cult Information Centre (CIC), said it would be “very surprising” if Lincoln, who belonged to the Children of God group, was the only one who had sex with minors.
Lincoln admitted attacking his victims, aged nine and 11, whi le a member of the religious sect, which operated at sites across the west of Scotland and Edinburgh.
The 74-year- old was convicted of the offences in Renfrewshire, Lanarkshire and Ayrshire between 1989 and 1996 before moving to France.
Leader s of the g roup encouraged its members to have sex with children.
Now Ian, who married a former Children of God member after she escaped, said he hopes Lincoln will volunteer informat ion about t he cu l t a f t e r admit t i n g his guilt. Ian said: “I met my former wife after she managed to leave this group and we were together for 22 years.
“It is close to my heart in many ways and I know quite a bit about it.
“It would be very surprising if Lincoln was the only member of his group who was abusing children. If he is reformed, he should be prepared to tell the truth and help police identify other offenders.” The group, who lived communally, carried out “mission activities” around the country and had limited interaction with the outside world.
Ian added: “This is a group that is well known in our f ield. The definition of a cult includes psychological, coercive mind controland radicalisation. Once a person becomes a victim of that, they’ll do whatever they’re told – which includes sexual relations with children.”
Ian helped set up CIC in 1987 after he escaped from a cult while working in Canada. He has acted as a consultant to police and been called as an expert witness in cult-related trials.
Children of God is also known as Family International and was last known to be using a postbox in Luton.
It encouraged sexual relationships with children through a 762-page book, which we are not naming, it produced in the 70s and early 80s. The publication featuredfea a two-year-old boy.
TheT sect, which was also known as TheTh Family, has faced allegations of widespreadwi sexual and physical abuse of children, including sexual violence, incestinc and brainwashing.
ItsI leader David Berg, who founded the cultcu in California in the 60s, died in 1994 whilewh on the run from the FBI.
IanI added: “I had copies of this literaturelite – it was so sickening.” Lincoln, also known as Derek Birks or John Green, was extradited from France in October 2019 after a five-year police investigation.
One of his victims described how “the light went out inside her” after the first time she was raped. She told how Lincoln apologised for his behaviour but continued with the abuse. The second victim also said he apologised and bought gifts.
Ian added: “I was delighted to see the work done by Police Scotland on this case and that they finally brought this guy to court. Having worked with former cult members, I know how hard it can be.
“It’s very difficult for victims to find the courage to come forward. But, for me, the crime doesn’t stop with the perpetrator – it stops with the group.”
Detective Sergeant Neil Wilson, from Pol ice Scotland’s Specialist Crime Division National Rape Task Force, said: “Following extensive investigations involving a number of witnesses and victims, a report was submitted to the procurator fiscal detailing the reported sexual offending of Derek Lincoln.
“We’d encourage anyone who has been the victim of sexual crime to come forward – and know we’ll listen and investigate.”