‘Sordid’ Hull man who sexually abused 3 boys jailed | UK | News

A man who sexually abused three victims when they were minors and raped one of them has been jailed. Victims of recent uncommitted crimes have suffered “catastrophic” and “earthquake” damage from serious sexual abuse they suffered as children, Hull Crown Court heard.

Following an eight-day trial at Hull Crown Court, which concluded earlier this month, Martin Tidder, 36, of Brazil Street, Hull, was found guilty of four counts of rape, four counts of assaulting a child by touch, three counts of inciting or encouraging a boy under 13 to engage in sexual activity and two counts of sexual assault of a child. He denied the crimes. After being taken into custody, he appeared at Hull Crown Court today, February 13, for sentencing.

In a statement following the sentencing, Humberside Police said it first received a report in December 2021 from a man who wanted to disclose recent, unremitting sexual abuse against himself and someone he knew as a child.

Initial investigations found that Tidder showed the man “cartoon porn” when he was between the ages of 10 and 14, and that he was once aroused by Tidder sexually assaulting him, police said.

Police said they received a second report a few weeks later, in January 2022, from another man who claimed he had been raped by Tidder regularly for about 11 years, starting when he was just six or seven years old. Police said a third person soon came forward with similar reports.

Prosecutor David Godfrey told the court the damage caused by Tidder was “serious”, with one of the victims describing it as “disgustingly devastating”.

Another victim condemned Tidder’s “selfish and manipulative behavior” and said the abuse had caused a serious emotional impact. A third victim said the abuse had a “huge impact”. Body Live reports.

Mr Godfrey told the court: “Grooming is an important attribute.” Tidder added that it had taken steps to prevent victims from reporting the situation to the police. He also said there was a “seismic” impact due to the crimes.

During the hearing, Mr Godfrey told Tidder: “You sexually assaulted all three of them, didn’t you? These three young people are telling the truth. You sexually assaulted them.” Tidder replied: “No.” “Nothing like this happened,” he said in court.

One of the victims told the sentencing hearing that Tidder was “laughing throughout the whole case”, Hull Live reported.

Julia Baggs, mitigating, said: “The defendant was convicted following a trial and there is little that can be said in the circumstances.” He said of the crimes: “This obviously affected everyone.”

Tidder was previously working full time and had the support of some people who knew him. After he is released from prison, his driver’s license will be extended for one year. He will have to register as a sex offender for life.

In a statement released by Humberside Police after today’s hearing, one of the victims said: “Some men never share their abuse, some reveal it on their deathbed, I want to change that. I want to stand with these boys and tell them it’s okay to speak out.”

Detective Constable Rebecca Davison, of Humberside Police’s Protection of Vulnerable People Unit, said: “Rape and sexual abuse against boys and men is hugely under-reported and I would like to start by recognizing and praising these three men for coming forward and reporting what happened to them as young children.

“Reporting such crimes is never easy, especially for an adult who is subjected to horrific crimes at such a young age and deprived of his innocence, but when one of them initially came out to someone he trusted, it led to a ripple effect of revelations against Tidder, allowing detectives to build a significant case against him and bring him to trial years after he committed the crimes.”

Detective Constable Rebecca added: “We would not be here today without the courage and strength shown by the men who not only supported and stuck with each other throughout the entirety of a very long and complex investigation, but who, despite everything they had been through, were still willing to provide evidence that ultimately led to us achieving some form of justice for them.

“We take reports of rape and other sexual crimes, both recent and non-recent, extremely seriously and will continue to seek justice for those who have suffered at the hands of disgusting people like Tidder. No matter your age, gender or whether the crimes occurred yesterday or 30 years ago, we encourage you to tell someone you trust and report it to the police. Hear from another brave sexual abuse survivor who waived her legal right to anonymity for life and is telling her story and encouraging more people to come forward and tell someone.”