Corby man sent to prison for child sex offences

A 52-year-old man has been sent to prison after he was found guilty of eight child sex offences.

Between 2008 and 2019, Derek McAvoy sexually abused a girl on multiple occasions, touching her inappropriately and taking photos of her in various states of undress.

The girl bravely reported the offences to Northamptonshire Police in 2019, and McAvoy was arrested and subsequently charged with one count of sexually assaulting a girl under 13, four counts of sexually assaulting a girl under 16, two counts of causing/inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, and one count of voyeurism.

McAvoy, formerly of Northbrook, Corby, took the case to a trial at Northampton Crown Court which lasted four days and ended at the beginning of the month (April 2) with guilty verdicts from the jury on all eight counts. 

He was sentenced on the same day to 11 years in prison.

Detective Constable Kirstie Brooks from Northamptonshire Police’s Child Abuse Investigation Unit, said: “I am really pleased to see this case end with guilty verdicts, and I hope the survivor in this case feels both a sense of justice and that she has been truly listened to and heard.

“McAvoy’s abuse was extensive and prolonged, and he is now thankfully behind bars, where people who commit these types of offences belong.

“I would like to thank retired officer, DC Sharon Jephcott, for the work she did on this case, and I also want to reassure the public that we will continue working hard in the Child Abuse Investigation Unit to ensure more people like McAvoy end up in a prison cell.”