Monstrous pensioner ‘systematically’ sexually abused young girls

Donald Owen ‘took away the youth and innocence’ of his victims, who bravely came forward and revealed the horrific abuse they had been put through.

To this day, the 71-year-old despicably maintains his innocence, however the complainants were told they could take some comfort in the fact that he will remain behind bars for more than a decade.

The defendant was convicted after trial of one count of rape and 13 counts of indecent assault, and he appeared to be sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court on Friday, January 6.

Prosecutor Andrew Green told the court how Owen, at various different stages of his life, between the 1970s and 1990s, sexually abused the children in Warrington.

One was under the age of 10, another was a teenager and the third victim was in her early teens when she was ‘systematically abused’, with the defendant at that point being in his 40s.

On one occasion, the first girl was made to remove her clothes by Owen, who was more than 10 years older than her, and was then painfully raped.

He then told her to keep quiet about it or else she would be ‘in trouble’, frightening her enough to not speak up about it.

An indecent assault on the second victim saw Owen restrain her by the wrists, before she kicked him and ran away, resolute in her belief that his actions were sexually motivated.

She spoke out about what happened but heartbreakingly was not believed at the time, causing her mental health to ‘collapse’.

The third victim was four times younger than the defendant when he targeted her.

One of the indecent assaults she was subjected to saw him try to remove her clothing while on top of her and touch her sexually.

Owen also performed an act on her which would now be classed as rape, but at the time was considered to constitute as ‘indecent assault’.

She only felt comfortable opening up on the extent of what happened to her when she reached adulthood as she was left scared from the threats he gave of what he would do if she spoke out.

Following his arrest, Owen denied sexually abusing any of the complainants.

The court heard how the defendant gained the trust of the girls, often when they were emotionally vulnerable, and befriended them.

He tried to normalise the sexual behaviour, and while the children did not understand what was happening to them, they knew it was wrong.

In a statement, the first victim said what happened has had a ‘considerable’ impact on her life, while the second said it has taken her a ‘long time to get her life back on track’.

She commented that his actions destroyed her self-worth and ‘took away her youth and innocence’.

“I hope to get closure after this and move on with my life, knowing this will never happen to anyone else,” her statement read.

The third victim said that Owen ‘controlled her life’ in the sense that she was not able to move on from what had happened.

Addressing him directly, she said: “You think you can do whatever you want to anyone and get away with it.

“Life has been hard for me, and I have been up and down mentally. Talking has been one of the hardest things I have done. Now is the time the truth finally comes out.”

Donald Owen was jailed at Liverpool Crown Court

Mr Green explained that Owen has ‘old previous convictions for dissimilar matters;, about which detail was not given in court.

Representing her client, Carmel Wilde said: “The defendant still regrettably maintains his innocence, which is of no comfort to the complainants who are bravely in court listening to the facts and reading out statements about the shocking and disgusting offending which happened.”

She referenced, ‘without looking to minimise’ what the women had gone through, Owen’s ‘limited mitigation’ in terms of his limited historic previous convictions and the 20 years since the offending.

She also spoke of his previous good work ethic, in the army and later as a taxi driver and funeral director, as well as his poor physical and mental health.

“He may well end his living days in custody. The complainants can sleep knowing this will not happen to anyone else,” Ms Wilde added.

“I ask the court to keep the sentence as short as possible in the circumstances.”

Before sentencing, judge Stuart Driver said: “You were convicted after trial of serious sexual offences against three victims.

“You abused them separately and consecutively. The impact on each of them has been severe.”

Owen, of Barry Street in Latchford, was sentenced to 21 years in prison, with a further year on extended licence.

As he is deemed an ‘offender of particular concern’, he must serve two thirds of this sentence before his case is heard by the parole board, which will determine if it is safe for him to be released.

In addition, he is subject to sex offender notification and registration requirements for life, as well as an indefinite sexual harm prevention order which limits his contact with children.

After passing sentence, judge Driver said, first to Owen: “You will be in custody until you are at least 85, and you may remain in prison past your 90th birthday.

To those in the courtroom, he added: “I thank the victims in court for their dignity throughout the case.”

The sentence was welcomed by Wendy Newton, a specialist prosecutor with Crown Prosecution Service’s Rape and Serious Sexual Offences unit in Cheshire.

She said: “Donald Owen is a serial sexual predator who has abused children throughout most of his life.

“He made these children feel powerless over what was happening to them and that it was normal.

“They suffered the additional trauma of not being believed when they did find the courage to tell other adults about the abuse.

“The abuse has clearly had a profound impact on them, and they have carried the scars into their adult lives.

“Despite this, they have worked with the police and the CPS to bring their abuser to justice and place him behind bars where he belongs.

“It can often take the victims of sexual abuse many years to talk about what has happened to them.

“But time is no impediment to justice, and the CPS hopes this case again sends out the message that we will listen to complainants, no matter how long ago the abuse took place.”

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, call Cheshire Police on 101 or the charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.