Stalker who harassed boy and his family jailed

A man who stalked a child for months, including applying for a job at his school and interfering in a house sale, has been jailed.

Shane York repeatedly followed the boy - who he did not know - from school, took photographs and logged his actions, Nottinghamshire Police said.

When he discovered the boy's family were looking to move, the 32-year-old tried to arrange viewings of the house, then wrote to the estate agent, posing as the family, to cancel the sale.

At Nottingham Crown Court on Monday, York, of Squires Avenue, in Bulwell, Nottingham, who had admitted ten charges related to these and other offences, was sentenced to six years in custody and three on licence.

The boy's family discovered the problem, officers said, when they wrote to the estate agent to check on progress and were shown letters they had supposedly sent instructing the sale to be cancelled.

York was identified as the perpetrator soon after, at which point it was discovered he had also tried and failed to get a job at the boy's school.

Police said his campaign of stalking happened last year from February until his arrest in July.

This lead to the discovery of indecent photos of children linked to the sexual abuse of a separate young child on two different occasions in 2023 and 2024.

Further searches of York's home also led to the discovery, officers said, of more than 1,700 indecent images and videos of children and other extreme pornographic images.

York admitted a charge of stalking, two charges of indecent assault of a child under 13, two charges of taking indecent photographs of a child, three charges of making indecent photographs of a child, one charge of possessing indecent images of children and one charge of possessing indecent images involving animals.

Police said his offences showed "persistence and planning" and were "deeply concerning".

Det Con Stacey Lamb, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: "York's actions - not to mention his attempts to get a job at the boy's school - caused understandable distress to his victims and prompted an investigation that uncovered the truth of his depravity.

"The seriousness of York's crimes really can't be emphasised enough, while the danger he poses to children is clear for everyone to see.

"We're pleased to see his sentence reflect the serious nature of his offending.

"That might not have been possible without the young victim finding the courage to tell his parents what had happened, with his bravery ultimately helping stop York's offending before it escalated even further."

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