Ashley Ashington

Ashley Ashington, a 37-year-old man formerly of Neston, was sentenced at Chester Crown Court on 18 April 2024 for grooming and sexually exploiting two children from Ellesmere Port. The offences occurred between 26 January and 4 February 2024, when Ashington initiated contact with the victims through the Vinted app, a platform for second-hand clothing. The conversations quickly escalated to WhatsApp, where Ashington, falsely claiming to be in his early 20s, made repeated requests for sexual images and videos from the children, both under 16 years old.

The court heard that Ashington graphically described sexual acts, including bondage and threesomes, and sent a video of himself ejaculating. He obtained the phone number of one child and continued the predatory behaviour until the younger victim instructed him to block their numbers. Police analysis of Ashington's seized phone revealed the extent of the sexual communications. At the time, Ashington was on licence and had breached a previous risk of sexual harm order.

Ashington had pleaded guilty to causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, engaging in sexual communication with a child, and two counts of breaching a risk of sexual harm order. His Honour Judge Steven Everett described Ashington as a 'highly dangerous sexual predator' with the outlook of 'a paedophile with deviant sexual tendencies towards young girls'. The judge noted the premeditated grooming for personal sexual gratification and its 'catastrophic effect' on the victims' lives.

Victim personal statements highlighted severe impacts: one child began self-harming, both required private therapy, and their lives were 'tainted completely'. Ashington's defence, led by Richard Thomas, acknowledged no personal mitigation, citing his autism diagnosis but emphasising the guilty plea. The pre-sentence report concluded he 'cannot be managed in the community'.

Ashington's criminal history included five previous convictions for 36 offences, several involving making or possessing sexual images of children. He had been in custody for two years prior to charging in late 2023, initially arrested on 5 February 2024 for an unrelated matter.