Man with ‘perverted interest in children’ to have eye therapy
JUDGE ORDERS 35-YEAR-OLD TO SIGN UP FOR RADICAL TREATMENT
A JUDGE has ordered a Grimsby man with a ‘perverted interested in children’ to undergo special eye treatment to curb his fantasies.
Antony Akid, 35, of Edward Street, admitted possessing indecent images of children when police visited his home.
At Grimsby Crown Court, Judge Ahmed Nadim deferred sentence on Akid in order to assess his response to eye desensitisation therapy.
He was told he must undergo the treatment, either by paying for it himself or through the NHS.
The order was made after the judge was told it was the second time in six years that Akid had been convicted of possession of indecent images of children following a previous conviction in 2014 when he admitted eight counts of possession and one of distribution of indecent images.
Back then he received a 12-month prison sentence suspended for two years.
The judge said this was “a persistent breach and a breach of the Sex Prevention Order imposed at the previous hearing.” He said Akid admitted to “having a perverted interest [in children]” though he had never “translated that into acting out those fantasies.”
It is one of the first times a judge has ordered the treatment at Grimsby Crown Court and made it a condition of a deferred sentence.
The therapy involves a relatively new treatment of eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR).
It is available from the National Health Service and involves a patient recalling a traumatic event, usually from their childhood or in a theatre of war. At the same time the patient receives stimuli in a rhythmic left-right pattern. The stimuli can be something the patient sense through hearing, sight or feeling. The bilateral stimulation could involve movement of the eyes from side to side or a tapping movements on different sides of your body.
Trained staff also use tones heard through one ear then the other wearing headphones. The process lasts for around 90 minutes once a week. It is used in the treatment of panic attacks, anxiety, addictions and eating disorders where patients disclose their feelings as a practitioner moves an image, or a finger, from side to side as they are talking.
Judge Nadim said Akin had “a perverted sexual interest in child pornography”. “You contribute to the exploitation of vulnerable children that leads to immeasurable harm. The images you viewed are created with harm and with consequential danger that lasts many years. The easiest thing would be to look at the guidance and determine how long you are going to prison for,” the judge said.
He added: “I am willing to accept that you are committed to referring yourself to specialists and correcting yourself and re-focusing yourself. If that can be achieved that will be good for you and good for society. I am giving you a chance that you will take measures to correct yourself. “In the meantime you will not offend in any way shape or form and you will obtain counselling and therapy. I don’t expect you to wait for financial reasons.”
He said he wanted confirmation within three days that Akid had made contact with experts. “If you don’t you will appear before me and I will impose a significant sentence,” the Judge warned him.
Before the judge deferred the case to August 27, prosecutor Paul Genney said police had visited Akid’s home in Grimsby in November 2019.
He denied possessing the images and any interest in indecent images of children and denied being a risk to children.
Mr Genney said police later found 227 images of the most serious classification involving children as young as three to four years old. There were a total of 593 in lesser categories. Akin admitted downloading the images between March 2019 and November 2019. For Akid, Craig Lowe said his client had experienced trauma as a child and is now seeking psychological support. He said he is exploring the eye therapy.
The judge said Akid will be subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order indefinitely and a condition of his bail is that he “has to obtain counselling and therapy with the named experts on a self-financing basis.”
You contribute to the
exploitation of vulnerable children that leads to immeasurable
harm.
Judge Nadim
From Premier League star to football pundit, Jermaine Jenas wouldn’t have achieved his success without the support he enjoyed growing up in nottingham. Here the ex-england and nottingham forest midfielder reflects on the facilities he relied on – including buses – and urges readers to complete this year’s census. the answers you give help decision makers assess local needs and provide vital services, such as transport, in your area… I had a ball at my feet from when I could walk. My dad was a coach and set up soccer schools in the summer, where future pros Darren Huckerby and Michael Johnson trained.
They were older than me, but I’d get involved with drills. My local team was Clifton All Whites. We’d train on our own pitches, but also at Nottingham Trent University, which had an inflatable dome facility. If someone opened the door, they’d be shouted at to shut it before the dome would deflate! I’d play Saturday morning for my district, get back in time to play in the afternoon for Clifton, and then Sunday morning for Nottingham Forest. By the age of 12, the FA said I couldn’t play that many matches. I had to log my games, but to be honest, I’d lie. If my local side had a big match, I’d still play. To train with Forest, I was constantly on public transport.
It was my lifesaver. Mum was working hard, so Tuesdays and Thursdays I’d pack my school bag and football bag, lug them onto the bus and carry them around school all day, before catching more buses to and from Forest’s training ground.
I was home around 9pm.
Even when I earned my first contract, I still had to catch the bus to training every day because I didn’t have a car. I remember waiting at the bus stop and striker Dougie Freedman would drive up, wind down the window and shout: “JJ, where you going?” He’d then drop me at home. Dougie was brilliant. Through an education foundation I started with a friend, we provide free school bus trips in Nottingham for children who can’t afford to pay. I used to be one of those kids – on free school meals with 25p for my bus fare. The driver would punch a hole in my return ticket and if I lost it I was done for!
I’ve got three kids now and worry about their future, when I think about my childhood and the facilities I had. Having those good public transport links meant I could play football and train for my career, it was all there for me. That’s why you should fill in the census as it helps build a picture of what services are needed in your community. It only takes around ten minutes per person to complete and it’s too important not to do it.
I was on free school meals with 25p for my bus fare and if I lost my ticket I was done for