Victims are furious as police forces release 870 sex offenders after apologizing

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Some 870 sex offenders – including five child rape cases – have been treated through “community resolution” in just two years. Perverts need to admit their guilt and apologize

Police release sex offenders if they apologize.

Some 870 — including five child rape cases — have been treated through “community resolution” in just two years.

Perverts must admit their guilt and apologize – but escape punishment and never even have a criminal record.

Victims are asked for their opinion, but official guidelines say their opinion is “not final”.

Police forces should only use community resolution to bring down low-level crimes such as shoplifting.

However, policies vary widely from county to county, as some use them to resolve cases of rape, flashing, and child grooming.

South Yorkshire Police, embarrassed by the botched Rotherham abuse scandal, used the scheme to deal with the most sex crimes – 78.

Officers in Durham, Cheshire and Nottinghamshire all used it to rape girls under the age of 13.

This is how Merseyside Police dealt with the rape of a girl under 16.

Norfolk Police also took action over the rape of a boy and Derbyshire and Devon & Cornwall also used joint warrants in rape offences.

Fiona Mackenzie, of campaign group We Can’t Consent To This, said: “There is no justice for victims and no protection for the public if they release offenders if they apologize. So-called “minor” sexual offenses can be a pathway for perpetrators who later commit increasingly serious crimes.”

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “It is an absolute disgrace that terrible crimes go unpunished under this administration.”

Since 2020, seven rape cases, including five involving children, have been dealt with by municipal resolution, Interior Ministry figures show. There were 414 sexual assaults – 349 on girls and women. And 23 cases of grooming and 166 cases of embarrassment or voyeurism were resolved in the same way. A criminal justice source said: “They wonder if it’s part of a mission to cut costs.”

Officials say some of the offenses relate to sexual acts between children.

dr Alison Heydari of the National Police Chiefs’ Council said: “Community decisions and other non-judicial dispositions are used in about one percent of sexual cases.

“They can typically be used when school children share inappropriate images or in cases of sex between underage children. We have made it clear that out-of-court injunctions will not be used in serious cases.”

Victim: I’m angry, it’s just crazy

The policy has been branded “crazy” by Rotherham exploitation survivor Sammy Woodhouse.

Sammy, now 36, was horrified to learn that South Yorkshire Police are still letting predators off the hook 20 years after officers agreed not to prosecute their main offender.

Sammy was abused by Arshid Hussain as a teenager.

Hussain is now serving a 35-year sentence after an outcry forced a new inquest.

Sammy said, “I’m angry. It’s just crazy. Why on earth would you allow a sex offender to apologize and not be criminalized?

“I think it’s okay to use this scheme for something like shoplifting. But I’m struggling to find words about how I feel about it being used for rapists.

“We are always told that we have learned.

“In the case of the South Yorkshire Police, it shows that the lessons have not been learned at all.

“What kind of message is that supposed to send? It suggests to sex offenders that their actions will have no real consequences. It gives them a free pass.”

Arshid and his brothers Basharat and Bannaras were all jailed in 2016 for molesting girls as young as 11 for nearly 20 years.