TEACHER Jeremy Forrest has been jailed for five-and-a-half years today after he was yesterday found guilty of child abduction.

The 30-year-old, of Chislehurst Road, Petts Wood, had denied abducting a 15-year-old schoolgirl who he ran off to France with last year.

But yesterday (June 20) at Lewes Crown Court, Forrest, was found guilty after an eight-day trial.

And this morning he pleaded guilty to five counts of sexual activity with a child.

Judge Michael Lawson sentenced Forrest to four and a half years for the five offences of sexual activity with a child and one year for the offence of child abduction, to run consecutively.

 

He told Forrest: "Your behaviour in this period has been motivated by self-interest and has hurt and damaged many people - her family, your family, staff and pupils at the school and respect for teachers everywhere. It has damaged you too but that was something you were prepared to risk. You now have to pay that price."

Judge Lawson also imposed a Sexual Offences Prevention Order on Forrest banning him from working or volunteering with children and unsupervised contact with children forever.

The child abduction trial heard how the pupil had just turned 15 when she started a sexual relationship with Forrest after developing a crush on him at Bishop Bell C of E School in Eastbourne, East Sussex.

Fearing they were about to be exposed, Forrest booked them on a cross-Channel ferry from Dover to Calais on September 20 last year before spending seven days on the run in France.

The trial heard Forrest would pick the girl up in her school uniform and they would have sex in his car, in hotels and at his marital home.

The court heard that the girl told a friend they had sex up to eight times a night.

The girl also sent the defendant topless pictures of herself and he sent a photo of himself with his torso naked and his hands in his underpants.

Richard Barton, prosecuting, said Forrest's actions were an abuse of trust and he had not acted with the consent of the girl's parents.

He added that Forrest could be labelled a "paedophile" who had groomed the vulnerable teenager.

Ronald Jaffa, defending, said the girl was "desperate and suicidal" and Forrest went with her to France to prevent her coming to harm.

What are you views on the guilty verdict and the sentencing? Do you sympathise with Jeremy Forrest or think he has been treated harshly, or do you think he should have got a longer sentence? Add your comments below.