October 2021: Now living in Tenbury Wells

February 2019: Hewlett has now been released and was recently spotted Worcester

December 2016

Pervert tried to blackmail girl into having sex with him

A pervert who used indecent photos of an underage girl in a failed attempt to blackmail her into having sex with him has been jailed.

James Hewlett admitted two counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and two of possessing indecent images of the same underage victim, taken during webcam chats.

The 56-year-old grandfather was jailed for four years when he appeared before judge Robert Juckes QC at Worcester Crown Court on Friday, December 2.

Hewlett of Carlisle Road, Ronkswood, Worcester, came to the attention of police after the 15-year-old complainant’s mother reported him.

The mother had previously confiscated her daughter’s mobile phone, although she obtained a second and contact with Hewlett continued.

Abigail Nixon, prosecuting, said around 400 messages were exchanged between defendant and complainant between December 28 last year and January 2 this year.

On January 2 the complainant’s mother found her daughter communicating with the defendant via FaceTime and said ‘leave my daughter alone!’, causing Hewlett to immediately hang up.

The court heard how the defendant asked the complainant to take her clothes off via Skype.

“She had told him not to take photographs of her naked but she was aware he had done that,” said Miss Nixon.

Hewlett tried to arrange to meet with the complainant.

Miss Nixon said: “She had refused to do so, saying her parents would not let her. He was persuasive and threatened to show the pictures he had taken of her.”

In a victim personal statement the complainant said she had been ‘scared to leave the house’ and was ‘frightened of bumping into him’, telling police her GCSE results had suffered.

Judge Juckes said the offences were ones for which the public had a ‘great abhorrence’.

He said: “In this case the age disparity was very great. Your victim was only 15. The effect of this upon her has been exactly that which one would predict. It has completely taken from her her self-confidence.”

He added: “A significant aggravating factor is that when she resisted your attempt to get her to meet you, you effectively tried to blackmail her by using the photographs.”

Judge Juckes sentenced him to four years in prison for each of the counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, nine months for possession of the indecent images at category A and three months for those at category B. The sentences are to be served concurrently.

A sexual harm prevention order was made, preventing Hewlett having contact with children between the ages of 11 and 16.

He must also sign the sex offender’s register.