THE DEVASTATING impact of sexual abuse suffered by a Carlisle teenager was spelled out at a hearing which the offender refused to attend after claiming he was unwell.

Michael McCreedy, 59, who had previous convictions for raping, assaulting and falsely imprisoning a woman in the 1990s, denied four counts of engaging in sexual activity with a child.

He was convicted after a trial. The victim was aged 13 or 14 at the time when she was abused, Carlisle Crown Court heard.

McCreedy’s behaviour was so disinhibited, the court heard, that he at one point told the child that if she did not stop crying, he would subject her to “rough sex.” The court heard moving statements from the victim and her mother.

Prosecutor Richard Haworth said what happened left the victim struggling to cope – so much so that if somebody hugged her without warning she suffered a panic attack, the contact taking her back to the abuse.

The abuse ruined her ability to learn and take in information while at school, she said. She also suffered nightmares about what happened.

But the statement added: “I don’t consider myself a victim. I refuse to accept that mindset. I am attempting to move on with my life. I want to see myself as a survivor and move past what was said and done. He has damaged me enough.”

In her statement, the mother spoke of how her daughter had shown the courage to speak out about what happened.

What happened led to her daughter suffering a loss of trust and confidence; her innocence was stolen, she said. The abuse also led to the mother suffering a breakdown.

Its impact would be felt for years to come, she added.

Eve Salter, defending, said the defendant was now suffering from poor health and depression.

The defendant, of Millford, Gateshead, failed to attend the sentence hearing, saying he believed he was suffering from a heart attack, though the court was given no medical evidence of this. “He does not want to come out of his cell,” said the barrister.

She pointed out that the previous sexual offence, the rape, was committed against an adult victim.

McCreedy continues to deny wrongdoing, the court heard.

Recorder Thomas Moran noted the defendant was assessed as posing a “high risk of harm” to the public. “There is, in reality, very little if any mitigation,” said the judge.

“He remains unable to control his sexual urges… and the defendant is in denial about these offences; and he is still in denial about his previous convictions.

“There is no sign that he is willing to address his offending.”

Satisfied that the defendant poses a significant risk of committing further offences causing serious physical or psychological harm, the judge jailed McCreedy for five years.

He will serve two thirds of that term and then face a three-year extension to his licence period – the period for which he will be at risk of recall to prison. A restraining order forbids any contact with his victim for 15 years.

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