Paedophile PC 'preyed upon' 14-year-old girl
Cleveland PoliceThis article contains distressing details
A paedophile police officer who told a 14-year-old girl he wanted to "protect" her while he repeatedly sexually abused her has been jailed for 10 and a half years.
Nathan Henderson, 30, who worked for Cleveland Police, was an "adept and deviant groomer" who also collected and catalogued hundreds of graphic videos of children as young as two being raped, Teesside Crown Court heard.
His victim said she was shocked when she found out he was a police officer, adding people in his position were "supposed to stop men like him from hurting children".
Henderson, from Norton, Stockton, admitted 21 offences including 11 counts of sexual activity with a child.
The girl revealed to officers she had been having regular sexual contact with Henderson at his home and in his car after they spoke to her about her uploading indecent images of herself on social media, prosecutor Paul Cleasby.
The girl said Henderson contacted her on the app Whisper, commenting on a post in which she said she was about to start Year 10 at school and was looking forward to her GCSEs, the court heard.
Their contact moved to Snapchat and became sexual, with the pair going on to meet up multiple times, the court heard.
Henderson would pick her up in his car from near her home but never went to her house as he knew there were cameras there, the court heard.
The girl, who was extremely vulnerable as a result of being a victim of child sexual exploitation which she told Henderson about, had been given a tracker key ring by her mother, the court heard.
As part of his efforts to keep his actions secret, Henderson would put the device in a Faraday pouch in his car to block the signal so her movements would not be traced, Mr Cleasby said.
He also bought her colouring pencils and chocolate, asked her to role play as a seven-year-old and bought a second phone to communicate with her on, the court heard.
Smashed his phone
Henderson told the girl the whole reason he wanted to see her was to "protect" and "help" her, the court heard, adding he "went along with the sexual stuff despite [his] concerns" because she would be "safe" with him.
Henderson, who used sex toys and handcuffs in his repeated abuse of her, told her there were "some really horrible people out there" and he wanted her to "feel cared for", the prosecutor said.
The court heard messages showed he had also been trying to meet up with at least two other girls for sex.
The girl said she only realised Henderson was a police officer when he appeared in uniform in a picture shared by the force on social media, the court heard.
When officers went to arrest him at his home, he broke his mobile phone and tried to hide it in a boot, Mr Cleasby said.
Child rape collection
Officers seized multiple devices from his home which revealed he had been collecting graphic child sexual abuse videos and images since at least 2021, the court heard.
He had more than 1,100 videos in the most serious category totalling some 100 viewing hours, which included children aged between two and 15, the court heard.
He catalogued them in folders across three devices, titling them with the ages and descriptions of the children involved, the court heard.
Among the "disturbing" haul were videos of one girl being abused and violated in multiple ways between the ages of eight and 13, Mr Cleasby said.
There were also films of children as young as two being raped while performing sex acts with animals, the court heard.
Mr Cleasby said the haul clearly showed Henderson had an "enduring" and "long-standing sexual interest in children".
The prosecutor said Henderson was an "adept and deviant groomer of a particularly vulnerable child".
In his police interviews, Henderson lied about not knowing the girl's real age and tried to claim the she was blackmailing him, the court heard.
In a statement read to the court, the girl said Henderson "took advantage" of her and was "shocked" to find out he was a police officer.
"Weren't people in his position supposed to stop men like him from hurting children?" the girl said, adding: "He was supposed to protect me."
'Dangerous offender'
Judge Joanne Kidd said Henderson "deliberately targeted" the "exceptionally vulnerable" girl and "preyed upon" her "heartlessly and mercilessly".
She said she believed he may have volunteered to do work courses in safeguarding children and sexual abuse investigations to "open further lines of communications" with offenders and victims.
The judge said Henderson's indecent images haul included "lengthy videos" showing the "worst abuse of children one can imagine".
She said Henderson was a "dangerous offender" who used his knowledge and experience as a police officer to support his crime.
He will have to serve a further three and a half years on extended licence and must sign the sex offenders register and comply with a sexual harm prevention order for life.
Speaking after Henderson was jailed, David Felton, deputy chief constable of Cleveland Police, praised the girl's bravery.
He said Henderson was sacked from the force within three weeks of the allegation being made.
"Any abuse of this kind is abhorrent, but it is unthinkable when it is carried out by a police officer," Mr Felton said, adding police officers were "in a position of trust and should be the protectors of our communities".
