FREDERICK BOTHAM'S SHOCKING CRIMES IN SALTBURN AND NORTH YORKSHIRE REVEALED

In December 2012, a disturbing case unfolded involving Frederick Botham, a man with a troubling past, and his wife Sylvia, in Saltburn, East Cleveland. The case centered around the couple's blatant disregard for court-imposed restrictions designed to protect minors from potential harm.

Frederick Botham, aged 70 at the time, was a registered sex offender due to previous convictions for indecent assault on a child. Despite this, he and his wife Sylvia, aged 74, engaged in activities that directly contravened a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) issued by magistrates in June 2007. This order explicitly prohibited him from having unsupervised contact with anyone under the age of 18.

Police had previously visited the couple in 2004, prior to their marriage, to discuss Botham’s status as a sex offender. The authorities had concerns about the couple’s movements and associations, which led to the application for the SOPO. The order was intended to prevent Botham from being alone with minors, but evidence showed that the couple repeatedly violated these restrictions.

Specifically, during 2010 and 2011, Botham and Sylvia took children to popular family attractions such as Flamingo Land in North Yorkshire and Chester Zoo. These outings occurred despite the court order, and Sylvia claimed she was unaware of the full details of her husband's past or the specific terms of the court restrictions. She insisted that she believed her husband had only committed one offence and that she was unaware of the severity of his past.

During the trial at Teesside Crown Court, Sylvia was convicted of seven counts of aiding and abetting her husband in breaching the court order. The jury found that she had known about the restrictions but failed to inform others when it was necessary to do so. Her defense argued that she was naively loyal and had kept her husband's past a secret from friends and family, hoping to manage the risks involved.

Frederick Botham was also found guilty of seven breaches of the SOPO. Judge Peter Armstrong sentenced him to six months in prison, emphasizing the seriousness of his actions. The judge stated, “You blatantly breached the Sexual Offences Prevention Order.”

In contrast, Sylvia received a four-month prison sentence, suspended for a period, reflecting her lesser role in the breaches. Her barrister, Adrian Dent, explained that she was beginning divorce proceedings and that her actions were driven by a misguided sense of loyalty. He described her as having been “naively loyal” and noted her efforts to keep her husband's past hidden.

Joanne Kidd, representing the prosecution, clarified that there was no evidence to suggest that Frederick Botham had harmed any children directly. However, the court acknowledged the potential danger posed by his presence around minors and expressed concern over the impact of his past on the community. The judge remarked that parents in Saltburn and the surrounding areas would have been “devastated” to learn of Botham’s history, underscoring the importance of the court’s protective measures.