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A vile man who raped a child and sexually abused others has been sentenced to 15 years in prison amid furious scenes in court.

Cameron Richards, of no fixed abode, appeared at Plymouth Crown Court after pleading guilty to eight sexual offences involving children.

The offences included two counts of rape, one count of attempted rape, one count of oral rape and four counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

The three children affected cannot be identified for legal reasons, reports Plymouth Live.

Prosecutor Rachel Drake told the court Richards, 35, had pleaded guilty to offences which included him abusing the children in a number of different locations.

Some of the victims, along with their family and supporters, sat in the public gallery, evidently deeply distressed as Ms Drake read out the different charges in detail.

Ms Drake also read out victim impact statements from the mother of one of the victims as well as one of Richards’ victims themselves.

The mother said the assaults on her child had caused huge damage and that their child had repeatedly stated they wanted to kill themselves.

One of the victims said that they were left feeling like it was somehow their fault and that they feared that “no-one would believe me”.

They added that, because of the abuse, they had “lost out on my childhood” and were “worried about how I will develop relationships in the future”.

Richards’ advocate Michael Green admitted his mitigation was “limited”, stating that nothing his client could say through him would provide any comfort to the victims and adding that his client pleaded guilty to “horrendous offences”.

He said Richards knew he would be jailed for a long time and had “recognised that he deserves such a sentence”.

Sentencing Richards, Recorder Richard Stead noted that he had no previous convictions.

He said Richards had numerous opportunities to stop the abuse but, instead, continued regardless of the “psychological and physical damage” to the children which he said would be “deep and long lasting.”

At this point in proceedings, there was an outburst from several people in the public gallery, with angry and upset shouts of “I hope you f****** kill yourself”, “I hope you f****** die you dirty f****** b***ard”.

A number of people had stepped forward towards Richards who was swiftly removed from the dock and taken back down to the cells as court staff called for calm.

Several people were made to leave the courtroom and proceedings only restarted after assurances were given that there would be no further outbursts from the public gallery.

Recorder Stead continued his sentencing, saying Richards had “no regard” for the children he abused, despite knowing he was doing wrong, but carried on for his “own sexual gratification”.

He said the offences clearly showed Richards had planned the abuse, in terms of the timing and locations and that there was “evidence of grooming behaviour”.

He added: “All have lost their childhoods and will carry with them the psychological impact of what you did to them.”

Recorder Stead said he would consider the totality of his offending in sentencing and jailed Richards for 15 years.

He said this had been reduced due to his early guilty plea which, under sentencing guidelines, meant he was obliged to reduce any sentence he gave by 25 per cent.

He said it would be “at least” ten years before Richards’ release from prison could be referred to the parole board and that he would remain on a conditional licence and supervision on release.

Recorder Stead said he would make Richards subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order until further notice and that he would remain on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life, which included a necessity to alert police to where he was living as well as if he moved.

Detective Constable Natasha Elliott-Smith from the Plymouth Public Protection Unit, said: “I am pleased to hear that Cameron Richards has been given a 15-year custodial sentence.

“A police investigation was launched where two further victims were identified.

“Through the support of specialist trained officers from the Public Protection Unit, the complainants were all able to provide compelling victim testimonies and this no doubt influenced the defendant’s guilty plea.

“This investigation highlights the importance of listening to the worries of children and acting on concerns raised by young people.

“I would like to thank the victims for their incredible bravery in coming forward and the victim’s families who have provided ongoing support to them throughout the investigation; I hope this sentencing can begin to offer some closure for you all.

“This case once again shows the Police’s commitment to supporting victims of sexual abuse, to thoroughly investigate offending of this deplorable nature, to protect the vulnerable in our society and bring offenders to justice.”

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