Update: Died of an undiagnosed heart disease on March 30, 2019, at HMP Dartmoor

January 2013

16 years for North Devon paedophile Graham Godbeer who had sex with dog

A paedophile who ruined the childhoods of two girls who he groomed for sex has been jailed for 16 years.

Graham Godbeer, of Veale Close, Hatherleigh, first struck in the late 1970s when he persuaded a five-year-old girl to go on outings with him by offering her ice creams.

He went on to abuse her after stopping at remote lay-bys in North Devon and he bullied her into silence by telling her that no-one would believe her.

His attacks remained secret for more than 30 years and only came to light after he was arrested for abusing a second girl whose parents he befriended.

When he was arrested police found child abuse images on his six mobile phones along with texts from fellow paedophiles in which they shared their experiences of molesting girls and swapped tips for grooming new victims.

Detectives are still trying to trace a girl who was filmed being abused in one of the images on his phone which they fear may have been taken by a fellow paedophile and sent to him.

They are also investigating whether Godbeer may have abused other victims in the 30 years between the two sets of offences they have already uncovered.

Godbeer denied rape and three counts of indecency against the first victim but was found guilty by a jury at Exeter Crown Court.

He admitted sexual assault on the second girl, eight offences of possessing child pornography, and three of possessing extreme adult pornography.

He was jailed for a total of 16 years and seven months by Judge John Neligan, who told him he had caused great psychological harm to each of his victims.

He told him: “You took a girl out in your car and started by indecently assaulting her, causing her considerable physical pain.

“The most serious offence was a rape, committed when she was about seven. You raped her some three times of different occasions and she described the pain she suffered.

“In her victim impact statement she describes how she was deprived of a normal childhood and of the enormous emotional distress she has since suffered.

“You abused the second girl after winning her confidence in the form of grooming her by comforting her when she was upset.

“Her mother’s statement shows the victim has not been sleeping well since the offences and has suffered nightmares as a result of what you did and at school they have noticed a change.”

Mr Richard Crabb, prosecuting, said Godbeer was arrested in September 2011 after the ten-year-old daughter of a friend told her mother he had touched her and kissed her while visiting her home.

Police then found the images and messages on his mobile phone and his arrest gave the original victim the courage to come forward after more than 30 years.

Mr Crabb said: “There were text messages from other men on his six mobile phones discussing the sexual abuse of children and encouraging the abuse of children.”

He said detectives also found videos at his home including one showing him naked but for a pair of pants on his head and indulging in sex acts with a Jack Russell dog. He said the discovery caused considerable distress to the dog’s owner, who was Godbeer’s ex-wife.

Miss Kelly Scrivener, defending, said Godbeer had admitted the most recent offences and showed genuine remorse for them.

She said he is a grandfather with his own family who had not yet seen three grandchildren born since he has been in custody.

After the case an officer on the inquiry team revealed that police are still hunting for paedophiles who exchanged messages, images and video clips.

She said: “We are still struggling to trace the origins of the images on the mobiles, including a movie of a girl being abused which we have never seen before and we do not believe has come from the internet.

“We are also concerned that although Godbeer committed the first and most serious offences when he was 20 to 22 and may have done other things in the intervening years which we have not uncovered.

“The detailed way in which he talks about child abuse in his text messages suggests there could be more victims and this is still an active investigation.

“We hope he could help us to find other offenders with whom he was exchanging texts about what they had done and techniques of grooming.

“We hope this sentence will encourage any others who may have been abused to come forward, no matter how long ago the abuse may have happened.”

November 2012

Police fear paedophile Graham Godbeer may have other victims

Detectives fear a paedophile who assaulted two young girls may have groomed other victims in the 30 years in between the two offences.

Slaughterman Graham Godbeer could be jailed indefinitely after he was found guilty of raping an eight-year-old girl in the early 1980s.

The jury at Exeter Crown Court convicted him without knowing that he had already admitted a sexual assault on a ten-year-old girl last year and a string of child pornography offences.

Messages found on Godbeer’s mobile phone suggest he was in contact with other child abusers and they suspect he may have abused more victims who have not yet come forward.

Godbeer, 55, of Veale Close, Hatherleigh, denied rape and three offences of indecency with a girl aged four to eight. He was cleared of two other rapes on the same victim.

He was found guilty and Judge John Neligan adjourned the case for reports and remanded Godbeer in custody.

He told him: “This has been a heartbreaking case. A need to see a report from a probation officer as to whether you pose a danger of causing significant harm to children.

“If that is the conclusion of the court your sentence will be indefinite. If not, it will be a lengthy prison sentence.”

During a week-long trial the jury heard how he started grooming the child when she was just four and took her out in his car for ice creams before abusing her in a layby near Okehampton.

The victim, now an adult, told in a video recorded interview that his attacks caused so much pain she had difficulty walking.

He ensured her silence by telling her that nobody would believe her if she reported what he was doing and his attacks progressed from groping to full rape when she was just seven.

Godbeer denied any of the abuse happened and said he could not remember taking the girl out in his car on his own, although this was contradicted by his ex-wife.

After his conviction Mr Richard Crabb, prosecuting, told the jury that before the trial Godbeer had admitted the sexual assault of a child of ten and eight offences possession of indecent images of children.

Speaking outside the court, Detective Sergeant Rob Kingdom, from the Devon and Cornwall child protection unit, said the case was the most disturbing seen by several experienced officers.

He said the investigation started last year when a mother complained that Godbeer was grooming her ten-year-old daughter and started touching the child.

Officers found disturbing images and messages on Godbeer’s phone which convinced them he had a long-standing and predatory interest in the abuse of children.

They carried out inquiries into his background which resulted in the young victim of his early assaults coming forward.

DS Kingdom said: “We have identified very serious sexual offences over a number of years and we are very grateful to the victims for their bravery in coming forward.

“Our investigations are continuing with regard to him and to other people who he was in contact with. His text messages showed he was in touch with other like-minded people.

“One of the messages appeared to be inciting Godbeer to commit offences against children. He did not have a computer but had images on his mobile phone.

“We are really concerned about his lifestyle and activities. One of the images is of a child who we would like to be able to identify.

“He is quite a depraved character and we see him as a danger to children and to the vulnerable in general. We are really pleased with the verdict because it shows the victim has been believed.”