Conor Godfrey

A Luton man, Conor Godfrey, aged 28, has been sentenced to eight years in prison following a guilty plea to 28 serious sexual offences against young girls. The case, investigated by Bedfordshire Police’s Internet Child Abuse Investigation Team (ICAIT), uncovered a disturbing pattern of online grooming targeting vulnerable children worldwide.

Godfrey, residing on Barton Road in Luton, posed as a teenager aged 16 to 18 on social media platforms like Snapchat to gain the trust of his victims. The offences, committed when he was between 21 and 27 years old, included engaging in penetrative sexual activity with a child, inciting children to engage in sexual activity, and the making and distribution of indecent images of children. Investigations revealed he had been communicating with over 2,250 children online, including hundreds in the UK, with seven victims providing direct accounts to police.

• One 13-year-old girl reported being groomed by Godfrey to perform sexualised acts on herself via Snapchat.
• Godfrey met a 14-year-old victim on multiple occasions and performed sexual acts on her.
• Seized electronic devices contained records of sexual conversations with young girls, which he used to threaten them, along with accessed and created indecent images of children, including material involving the victims.

The two-year investigation began after a report from the 13-year-old victim and culminated in Godfrey's arrest in May 2020. On 28 April 2022, at Luton Crown Court, he was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment with an additional four-year extended licence period. Deemed a dangerous offender, Godfrey will be subject to an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.

Detective Emma Shipton, who led the investigation, described Godfrey's actions as 'abhorrent' and emphasised the danger he poses to young girls both online and offline. She stated: “He clearly poses a danger to young girls both online and offline and I hope this result sends a clear message that such activity is taken extremely seriously, and perpetrators will face the consequences for their disturbing and vile behaviour.” The case highlights the critical role of reporting online child exploitation, with Bedfordshire Police urging the public to contact them via 101 for concerns.

Source: Luton Today, published 4 May 2022.