STOCKPORT MAN CONVICTED OF SEXUALLY ABUSING GIRL IN WATERWORLD
A nine-year-old girl was sexually touched by a vile pervert in a Staffordshire waterpark.The child was with another youngster while 26-year-old Edward Earnshaw was loitering in the changing area in Waterworld in Stoke-on-Trent.
Earnshaw walked into her cubicle, touched her private area and asked 'What's this?' while the victim was on her own.
The youngster then slapped his arm away and he left the cubicle and returned to the Festival Park pools.
The defendant had denied sexual touching of a child but was found guilty after a trial at Stoke on Trent Crown Court.
A report is currently being prepared on him by a probation officer ahead of him being sentenced on November 28.
The court heard the girl had gone to the attraction with her mum and another child.
Prosecutor Ben Lawrence described how Earnshaw entered the girl's cubicle, asking if she was using it, and then reached down to touch what she described as her private area, asking 'What's this?'.
The girl slapped his arm away, and he left, returning to the pool area.
CCTV footage confirmed he entered the cubicle, and despite Earnshaw claiming he intended to change and not speak to the girl, the court found his actions to be sexually motivated.
Earnshaw denied any sexual intent, stating he only asked if the cubicle was free and did not touch her.
Despite his denial, he was convicted after a four-day trial.
The judge, Recorder Julian Taylor, ordered him onto the sex offenders' register on an interim basis, extended his bail, and is considering all options including custody, highlighting the seriousness of the offence involving a nine-year-old girl.
