December 2016

Pervert jailed for sex offences with child

The former chairman of a North Yorkshire football club for girls and women has been jailed for sexual activity with a child he met through the sport.

James Hunter’s crimes have ended his quarter of a century in football as player, coach and club official, his barrister Taryn Turner told York Crown Court.

She called him a “pillar of the community” who had lost his job, his marriage and probably his house through his sexual affair with the girl who was in her teens.

Anthony Dunne, prosecuting, said Hunter, 38, had driven to three meetings with the girl during which they had engaged in sexual activity.

“She said (to Hunter) she was the right age for him and he said he was the right age for her,” said Mr Dunne.

“He said (to the girl) it was wrong because of her age and he was married,” said the prosecution barrister. But Hunter had continued the sexual activity for a couple of months until he stopped answering her social media messages.

Judge Andrew Stubbs QC said after police learnt about the relationship, they carried out extensive investigations including within Scarborough Ladies Football Club, of which Hunter was chairman at the time, and failed to find any more victims.

He told Hunter: “You told her how wrong it was, how you could go to prison and yet you were unable to control yourself despite that honesty.

He jailed Hunter, of Tindall Street, Scarborough, for four years, put him on the sex offenders’ register for life and made him subject to a sexual harm prevention order for life, restricting his contact with girls under 16 and banning him from contacting the girl again.

The judge said he didn’t regard Hunter as a predatory paedophile.