Man found guilty of sexual offences after 30 years

A man has been found guilty of a series of sexual offences against a child which happened 30 years ago.

Andrew Bleasdale, 52, was first interviewed under caution in December 2018 and was subsequently charged with 14 offences of rape and sexual assault on a child under 13 years. 

Bleasdale, of Claydon Path, Aylesbury denied all charges but after a trial lasting eight days a jury at Worcester Crown Court found him guilty of 10 counts which included oral rape, indecency with a child and indecent assault.

He will be sentenced at Warwick Crown Court in Leamington on Thursday 17 March.

The offences took place in Worcestershire when the female victim was aged between three and nine years old.

Speaking after the trial she said: "Words cannot convey the devastating impact this has had on me, though I have never let the horrific things inflicted upon me in my childhood define my life.

"I often think that if people could see the emotional scars that I carry they would recoil from me in horror.

"I have had to disclose my disgusting and vile secrets with strangers, people that I would never want to know the tremendous shame I have carried within me for so long. 

"I have put my faith into the hands of the police and justice system and finding the strength to do so has been incredibly hard. 

"So much has been out of my control and the feeling of being powerless has taken me back to my childhood where my innocence was taken from me in the worst possible way.

"Allowing our family to finally air our secret in public has freed us. 

"As a family we are fractured, we are bruised and we are sore. But we are not broken. 

"We’re now able to talk about this together more openly and we can now begin a healing process, something we have needed to do for so many years."

DC Shelley Aplin, who led the investigation, said: "I hope this will send a strong message to any perpetrators of sexual abuse that no matter how long ago the offences were we will investigate and seek justice for the victim.

"It is often hard for victims to come forward but when they pluck up the courage to do I can assure them that they will be believed and we will make sure they have the right support as the case progresses.

"I would like to pay tribute to this victim for her bravery in coming forward and hope that the outcome of the trial will allow her to get on with the rest of her life."