A teaching assistant who sexually abused a ten-year-old boy has been jailed.
Denise Povall, 61, from Ripon, has been put behind bars for eight years after she groomed the little boy, bought him gifts and sent him texts before attacking him. North Yorkshire Police said she carried out an “evil and sustained” campaign of sexual exploitation, had sex with the boy and performed sex acts on him.
The offences took place in the 2000s when she worked at a primary school in the Harrogate area.
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Police say Povall still has taken “absolutely no accountability” for her sick offending, which the victim said has deeply affected his life. He came forward as an adult.
During police interviews, Povall was said to have denied any offences had taken place, but a case was compiled against her and resulted in her being found guilty of offences including grooming, inciting sex with a child, inciting sexual activity with a child and sexual assault by touching.
She was jailed on Friday at York Crown Court. After the hearing, Detective Constable Alison Morris, who led the investigation for North Yorkshire Police, said: “This has been a long and extensive investigation into some of the most serious types of offences we encounter as detectives.
(Image: Dave Himelfield)
“What we uncovered can only be described as evil and sustained sexual abuse of a young child by a paedophile. Povall has taken absolutely no accountability for the damage she has done to her victim’s life, so I’m glad we’ve been able to help the victim secure some sort of closure.
“He’s been incredibly brave coming forward, especially given the common misconception that women don’t commit these sort of crimes. Due to the way paedophiles such as Povall groom, manipulate and control their victims, we know child sexual abuse is under-reported.
“So I want anyone who thinks they may have been sexually assaulted – no matter how long ago it happened – to know they can come forward. We have specially-trained officers and we work with organisations that provide excellent practical and emotional support.”
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