A paedophile who groomed and repeatedly sexually abused a young child in Ashford during the 1990s has been jailed after his victim came forward decades later.
Trevor Bagnall, 68, was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison at Canterbury Crown Court on Friday, September 4, 2026.
Kent Police launched an investigation after the victim reported abuse which had taken place around 30 years earlier.
Officers established that Bagnall had subjected the child to repeated sexual abuse between 1995 and 1999.
Bagnall, of Farthing Fields in Bordon, Hampshire, was arrested in May 2020 and subsequently charged.
He denied wrongdoing and the case proceeded to trial, where he was found guilty of gross indecency and sexually assaulting a child.
Victim praised for ‘exceptional bravery’
Following the sentencing, investigator Becki Pike praised the victim for coming forward and supporting the investigation.
She said: “We couldn’t have secured a conviction against Bagnall without the exceptional bravery of the victim in reporting the Crime and working with us to gather the necessary evidence.
“Bagnall refused to admit accountability and demonstrated zero remorse for his crimes, needlessly dragging his victim through a lengthy court trial in the process.
“While nothing will erase the impact of Bagnall’s vile actions, I hope the custodial sentence offers some comfort to the victim.”
‘I was a child trying to survive’
In a statement presented to the court, the victim described carrying feelings of guilt for years over not reporting the abuse sooner.
They said: “For many years, I believed I should have done something sooner. I carried guilt for not speaking out. I now understand that I was a child trying to survive. The responsibility for what happened belongs entirely to Trevor.
“The sentence the court imposed marks the end of the criminal proceedings, but it will not mark the end of the sentence I continue to live with.
“Every day I carry the consequences of Trevor’s choices. His abuse has shaped my relationships, my confidence, my career, my emotional wellbeing and my sense of identity.
“Those losses cannot be measured by the length of any sentencing because they will remain with me for the rest of my life.”
SEO title: Paedophile jailed for historic child sex offences in Ashford
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