KELSEY OSBOURNE OF EAST DENE JAILED FOR SEX OFFENCES IN ROTHERHAM AND DONCASTER

In a disturbing series of events that unfolded in South Yorkshire, Kelsey Osbourne, a known sex offender from East Dene, was sentenced to prison following a series of alarming incidents involving minors and online predatory behavior.

Osbourne, who had previously served time for sexual activity with a child in 2014, was released from prison on August 17 of the previous year after serving his second sentence. His release was short-lived, as just over a week later, on August 25, he committed a new set of sexual offences while traveling on an X22 bus through Rotherham.

The incident took place on the upper deck of the bus, where Osbourne, 31 years old, drew the attention of three 14-year-old girls. According to court proceedings, Osbourne directed his mobile phone towards the girls, giving the impression that he was filming them. Prosecutor Paul O’Shea described the scene, stating, “He had his hands down his trousers, and appeared to be masturbating.”

One of the girls managed to see part of Osbourne’s exposed penis during the incident. The girls responded by taking a short video and some photographs of his actions. Two of the girls confronted Osbourne about his behavior, to which he responded by denying any wrongdoing, claiming they were paranoid. The girls, after returning home, shared their experiences with their families, and some of the images were uploaded onto Facebook, raising further concern.

In a disturbing twist, Osbourne later sent a friend request to one of the girls via Snapchat. Following this, he engaged in online communications with four individuals who falsely claimed to be girls aged between 10 and 14 years old. These accounts were actually operated by adults as part of a sting operation designed to catch sex offenders. Osbourne sent explicit messages, including videos of himself masturbating and pornography, to these decoy accounts. He also attempted to arrange meetings for sexual encounters.

The court heard that when the decoy ‘girls’ did not respond to his requests for video chats or meetings, Osbourne would block them, deactivate his Facebook account, and then create new accounts to continue his predatory behavior. His actions culminated in his arrest by South Yorkshire Police in September of the same year, after one of the decoy account operators reported him.

During police interviews, Osbourne acknowledged that he posed a danger to young girls and admitted he needed help. He pleaded guilty to one count of exposure and to other charges related to attempting to communicate sexually with a child, trying to cause a child to watch a sexual act, and attempting to engage in sexual activity with a child. These offences occurred while he was still on license and in breach of a sexual harm prevention order.

Initially, Osbourne was scheduled to stand trial next week on charges of exposure and engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child. However, after his guilty plea to the exposure charge, the Crown offered no evidence on the other charges. His defense questioned the nature of the exposure, suggesting it involved masturbation, but the judge, Graham Reeds QC, clarified that both parties agreed Osbourne had at least placed his hand on his penis in front of the girls, and thus, the specifics of masturbation were deemed unnecessary to debate.

In sentencing, Judge Reeds imposed a two-year prison term, placed Osbourne under a new sexual harm prevention order, and ordered him to be on the sex offenders’ register for life. The case highlights the ongoing risks posed by individuals like Osbourne, especially given his history and breaches of legal restrictions, and underscores the importance of vigilant law enforcement and community awareness in protecting vulnerable minors.