RENOWNED MUSIC DIRECTOR JONATHAN SMITH SENTENCED FOR CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE

A renowned music director, Jonathan Smith, also known as Jonathan Grieves-Smith, has been jailed for a series of severe sexual offences. He was found guilty of 16 sex crimes, including two counts of rape, two of buggery, 10 counts of indecent assault, and two of gross indecency with a child. The offence occurred in Lewes, East Sussex, during the 1980s and early 1990s, where he used psychological manipulation and blackmail to abuse and rape a young girl, causing her severe psychological harm. His victim described him as the "destroyer of souls" in a victim statement read out at Hove Crown Court. Smith engaged in grooming behavior, acted in breach of trust, and his crimes were planned to a significant degree, according to prosecutors. Despite his abusive past, he built a reputation as a respected conductor across the UK, Europe, the US, Australia, and New Zealand, living in Victoria, Australia, since 1998, and serving as a choirmaster of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. He returned to the UK after a four-year extradition process and was living in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire. During sentencing via Skype, Judge Paul Tain commended the victim’s bravery, and Smith was sentenced to 24 years imprisonment. The defense argued that Smith had made a profound contribution to music and was unlikely to work again.