JOHN CLAWSON FROM MAESTEG FOUND GUILTY OF SEXUAL ABUSE IN LITTLEHAMPTON AND BUCKINGHAMSHIRE

In a significant development in the fight against historic child abuse, John Clawson, a 71-year-old man from Highdown Drive, Littlehampton, has been convicted of multiple sexual offences committed against two young boys. The crimes, which spanned several years, involved disturbing acts of abuse against victims aged just eight and 15 at the time of the offences.

Clawson’s conviction was handed down on Monday, September 8, following a court hearing at Amersham Law Courts in Buckinghamshire. The court found him guilty of a series of historic sexual offences, which had remained unpunished for decades. The case drew attention not only because of the heinous nature of the crimes but also due to the long delay in bringing the perpetrator to justice.

One of the victims, a man now aged 37, expressed a profound sense of relief and vindication after the verdict. For legal reasons, he cannot be named publicly, but he did speak out about the impact of Clawson’s actions. In a telephone interview, he described Clawson as ‘vile’ and ‘sick,’ emphasizing the gravity of the abuse. He stated, “He is the lowest of the low. To do this in the first place is wrong but to do it to two children that were so obviously vulnerable really is disgusting.”

The court proceedings revealed that Clawson had pleaded not guilty to seven counts of indecent assault, yet the jury found him guilty on six of those charges. The offences against the two victims took place between July 1, 1988, and March 23, 1993, at various locations in Middlesex and Amersham. One charge was acquitted, but the majority of the allegations resulted in a conviction.

The victims, who are not residents of the local area, came forward after seeing disturbing photographs of Clawson with children on Facebook. The 37-year-old victim recounted that seeing these images prompted him to realize that the abuse was wrong and motivated him to report Clawson to the authorities. “It was seeing this that made me think to myself that ‘no, this is not right’. I didn’t want this to happen to anyone else so then was the right time,” he explained.

The initial report of Clawson’s abuse was made to the Metropolitan Police in 2012, and the case was subsequently transferred to Thames Valley Police for further investigation. Detective Sergeant Malcolm Wheeler, of the Buckinghamshire Child Abuse Investigation Unit, led the inquiry. He commented on the case, saying, “This was an historic case which happened in the Amersham area and although the offences date back to the 1980s, this conviction shows that Clawson has not been able to escape justice. The victims have shown great courage in coming forward to tell police about the horrific acts that Clawson carried out, and I hope that the knowledge that Clawson has been found guilty of these offences and will be punished for his crimes will help the victims to move on from their ordeals.”

Clawson is scheduled to be sentenced on October 10. The 37-year-old victim shared that he was overwhelmed with emotion upon hearing of the conviction, revealing that he cried but ultimately felt a sense of justice. “But the most overwhelming feeling was vindication,” he said. “We had to wait 22 years for this.”