A man who sexually abused a 14 year old boy has been jailed today after the Attorney General, Geoffrey Cox QC MP, referred his sentence to the Court of Appeal for being too low.
Gerard Francis Drew, 46 at the time of the offending (now 64), returned to his Redditch home where a friend and the victim were drinking. Drew and his friend are both hearing impaired, and had a conversation in sign language which the victim could not understand. The two then proceeded to sexually assault the victim for around an hour.
Drew was originally sentenced at Hereford Crown Court in July, where he was given 2 years imprisonment suspended for 2 years. Today, after the Attorney General’s referral, the Court of Appeal found that the decision to suspend the sentence was unduly lenient, and that the sentence ought to be 2 years immediate imprisonment.
Speaking after the hearing, the Attorney General said:
“Sexual abuse is one of the most psychologically damaging things that can happen to a person, especially during their formative years. It is important that we send a clear message to offenders like Drew that crimes of this nature will not be tolerated.”