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21/09/2009
Jersey Care Home Worker Jailed For Abuse
A former care worker at the Haute de la Garenne children's home in Jersey has been jailed for two years after being found guilty of a number of sex attacks on teenage girls in the 1970s.
Gordon Wateridge, 78, of St Clement, Jersey worked at the care home between 1970 and 1974.
He was found guilty of eight counts of indecent assault against three girls and one charge of assaulting a teenage boy and was sentenced to 21 months for each of the indecent assaults and three months for the other assault charge at Jersey Royal Court, The charges are to run concurrently.
The trial heard how Wateridge would grope girls' breasts, hug them inappropriately and kiss them on the neck.
The children at the care home were described as "vulnerable" and suffered from a variety of problems.
Speaking at sentencing, Judge Christopher Pitchers said that Wateridge's actions were "sexual bullying", but were at the "lower end" of sentencing guidelines. However, he stressed that there was "no such thing as a trivial indecent assault of a child".
Last year, Haut de la Garenne became the focus of the largest investigation into child abuse ever conducted in Jersey. Initially, there were reports that human remains had been found at the site, while there were allegations that murders and tortures had taken place there. However, these claims were later proved to be false and senior police officers admitted that there was no evidence of any murders.
(KMcA/BMcC)
Gordon Wateridge, 78, of St Clement, Jersey worked at the care home between 1970 and 1974.
He was found guilty of eight counts of indecent assault against three girls and one charge of assaulting a teenage boy and was sentenced to 21 months for each of the indecent assaults and three months for the other assault charge at Jersey Royal Court, The charges are to run concurrently.
The trial heard how Wateridge would grope girls' breasts, hug them inappropriately and kiss them on the neck.
The children at the care home were described as "vulnerable" and suffered from a variety of problems.
Speaking at sentencing, Judge Christopher Pitchers said that Wateridge's actions were "sexual bullying", but were at the "lower end" of sentencing guidelines. However, he stressed that there was "no such thing as a trivial indecent assault of a child".
Last year, Haut de la Garenne became the focus of the largest investigation into child abuse ever conducted in Jersey. Initially, there were reports that human remains had been found at the site, while there were allegations that murders and tortures had taken place there. However, these claims were later proved to be false and senior police officers admitted that there was no evidence of any murders.
(KMcA/BMcC)
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Bones have been found during searches at a Jersey former care home where a child's remains were found. However, it is understood that the bones, discovered during resumed searches at the Haut de la Garenne building, belong to animals.
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Man Pleads Guilty To Jersey Child Abuse
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A 46-year-old man has pleaded guilty to sexually abusing boys in a Jersey care home almost four decades ago. Michael Aubin, who works as a cleaner, admitted two counts of gross indecency and two counts of indecent assault on children under 10-years-old at Haut de la Garenne.
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Police investigating the discovery of a child's remains in a former care home in Jersey are continuing their search of underground rooms at the site. On Friday, it was reported that a trapdoor, described by victims of alleged child abuse at the Haut de la Garenne care home, had been discovered.
28 February 2008
'Significant Finds' In Jersey Care Home Cellar
Police investigating the discovery of a child's remains in a former care home in Jersey have said that they have made "a couple of finds of some significance" as the search continues. The discovery was made during searches of underground rooms in a cellar at the Haut de la Garenne youth hostel.
'Significant Finds' In Jersey Care Home Cellar
Police investigating the discovery of a child's remains in a former care home in Jersey have said that they have made "a couple of finds of some significance" as the search continues. The discovery was made during searches of underground rooms in a cellar at the Haut de la Garenne youth hostel.
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