The brother of Phillip Schofield, Timothy Schofield, has been sentenced today (May 19) after being found guilty of sexually abusing a teenager.
Timothy was charged with the offences last month after a week-long trial.
Brother of Phillip Schofield charged with sexually abusing teenager
Last month, Phillip Schofield’s brother, Timothy, stood trial after being accused of sexually abusing a teenager. He was accused of 11 sexual offences involving a child between October 2016 and October 2019.
In a week-long trial at Exeter Crown Court, Timothy, 54, admitted to watching pornography and masturbating with the schoolboy.
During the trial, Phillip – via a written statement – revealed that Timothy had confided with him about the abuse.
“He said that he and [the boy] had time together and that last year they had watched porn…and [masturbated],” he said in the statement.
“I turned and said: ‘what did you just say?’. He said it was last year and we were alone together. Tim said it was just this once. I told him it should never happen again. He then started to tell me about [the boy’s] body.”
Phillip then continued, saying: “I said: ‘[Bleep], stop’. I shouted at Tim that he had to stop. I didn’t want to know any of the details but he made it sound like a one-off.”
Phillip Schofield ‘welcomes’ charging of his brother
However, he claims that the boy was over the age of 16 at the time of the abuse. He denied performing sexual acts on the teen. He pleaded not guilty, but the jury found him guilty of all counts.
After the guilty verdict was announced, Phillip released a statement. In the statement, he said he welcomed the guilty verdict.
“My overwhelming concern is and has always been for the wellbeing of the victim and his family. I hope that their privacy will now be respected,” he said.
“If any crime had ever been confessed to me by my sibling, I would have acted immediately to protect the victim and their family. These are despicable crimes, and I welcome the guilty verdicts. As far as I am concerned, I no longer have a brother.”
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Timothy Schofield sentenced
Today (Friday, May 19) saw a “broken” Timothy sentenced to 12 years in prison.
“You exploited his innocence at this stage of his life for your own sexual gratification. It was wrong on every level for you to behave as you did,” Mrs Justice Cutts said.
“You took away his ability to be the teenager he should have been – carefree, relaxed, happy. It is clear to me that you became utterly obsessed with him,” she then said.
Prior to the sentencing, a victim impact statement was read out. “I felt like I was trapped in a loop of fear and anxiety of the abuse happening again and again…it was only after (he) was arrested that I felt free,” it said. Timothy reportedly sat staring at the ceiling in the dock as the statement was read out.
It was reported that Timothy has been acting as a peer mentor for other prisoners and helping them with their literacy in prison.
Timothy’s brother, Phillip, wasn’t in court today during the sentencing.
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