DURHAM WRAGG SENTENCED IN MANCHESTER FOR CHILD PORNOGRAPHY INVOLVING PHILIPPINES AND THAILAND
| Red Rose Database
Sheffield Child Sexual Abuser
In January 2001, Durham Wragg, a convicted sex offender, was convicted for crimes involving child pornography and forgery. He falsely claimed in a letter from the private office of former Prime Minister Sir Edward Heath that he was a man of good character intending to travel abroad for marriage. Using this forged letter, Wragg gained entry to the Philippines, where he stayed at a holiday resort outside Manila. During his stay, he filmed videos of boys aged between eight and 16 in his hotel room.
Wragg was caught when he returned to Manchester after a joint operation involving Customs officials and the Greater Manchester Police Obscene Publications Unit. At Manchester Crown Court, the 56-year-old was sentenced to 30 months in prison. He admitted to smuggling, possessing, and taking obscene photographs of boys. This case marked the first time that the UK prosecuted the act of creating indecent images of children in another country under the Sexual Offenders Act.
Judge Anthony Ensor addressed Wragg in court, stating: "Anyone listening to this case and looking at the photographs could have nothing but feelings of revulsion and disgust at what you imported. It is clear from the videos that this was a planned activity on your part and the clumsy forgery of the letter from Sir Edward Heath's private office makes that apparent. I have to make it plain that this type of conduct can only receive a custodial sentence. You have not learned from your previous sentence and you will have to appreciate that if you continue in this way you will receive longer sentences. I have a duty to punish you and deter others from bringing filth into this country."
In addition to his prison term, Wragg was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life. Prosecutor Suzanne Goddard revealed that Wragg was intercepted at Manchester Airport after arriving from Kuala Lumpur. He claimed there was no indecent material on the videos, but they actually showed boys dancing in underwear and simulating sexual acts in his hotel room.
Wragg had previously obtained the letterhead of Sir Edward Heath’s office by writing to him and receiving a reply. His Sheffield home was searched, revealing a hidden compartment under the stairs where numerous obscene videos, filmed during a trip to Thailand in 1993, were discovered.
Wragg was caught when he returned to Manchester after a joint operation involving Customs officials and the Greater Manchester Police Obscene Publications Unit. At Manchester Crown Court, the 56-year-old was sentenced to 30 months in prison. He admitted to smuggling, possessing, and taking obscene photographs of boys. This case marked the first time that the UK prosecuted the act of creating indecent images of children in another country under the Sexual Offenders Act.
Judge Anthony Ensor addressed Wragg in court, stating: "Anyone listening to this case and looking at the photographs could have nothing but feelings of revulsion and disgust at what you imported. It is clear from the videos that this was a planned activity on your part and the clumsy forgery of the letter from Sir Edward Heath's private office makes that apparent. I have to make it plain that this type of conduct can only receive a custodial sentence. You have not learned from your previous sentence and you will have to appreciate that if you continue in this way you will receive longer sentences. I have a duty to punish you and deter others from bringing filth into this country."
In addition to his prison term, Wragg was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life. Prosecutor Suzanne Goddard revealed that Wragg was intercepted at Manchester Airport after arriving from Kuala Lumpur. He claimed there was no indecent material on the videos, but they actually showed boys dancing in underwear and simulating sexual acts in his hotel room.
Wragg had previously obtained the letterhead of Sir Edward Heath’s office by writing to him and receiving a reply. His Sheffield home was searched, revealing a hidden compartment under the stairs where numerous obscene videos, filmed during a trip to Thailand in 1993, were discovered.