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Ian Silvester was sentenced to 16 years in jail for a littany of kid sexual abuse offences after he used his caregiving positions to befriend and manipulate the youngsters
16:27, 07 Feb 2025Updated 16:31, 07 Feb 2025
Former scout chief Ian Silvester used his place of energy to control the victims (Image: PA)
A former scout leader has been jailed for 16 years after sexually abusing boys as young as seven over three decades.
Ian Silvester, 60, was a “paedophile hiding in plain sight.” He worked as a diving instructor, St John Ambulance trainer, first aid trainer and babysitter to befriended young victims and their families.
The sicko was convicted of assaulting 19 boys between 1986 and 2013.
Silvester, of Brighton, manipulated the children under the guise of playing an innocent game or taking part in an educational activity for his own sexual gratification, the court heard.
Sentencing on Friday, Judge Christine Laing KC advised Silvester : “You are the very definition of a paedophile hiding in plain sight.”
Silvester was convicted at Lewes Crown Court
The judge said the defendant had given his victims a “lifetime of shame and regret”, telling the court the abuse happened so “openly and plainly and so often in front of others”.
She added: “The fact is, you were in a position of trust with each boy.
“Either as their babysitter, their cub scout master, their diving coach, a provider of first aid training, claiming to meet them to practice to be victims, and your behaviour was a gross abuse of that trust.”
He was discovered responsible of 44 counts of indecent assault on a male, 25 counts of sexual exercise with a toddler, 4 counts of sexual assault, two counts of inciting a toddler to interact in sexual exercise, two counts of sexual assault of a kid beneath 13 and two counts of creating indecent pictures of kids.
Silvester was convicted of assaulting 19 boys between 1986 and 2013.(Image: Getty Images)
Silvester was jailed for 16 years, with an additional six years on extended licence.
After his arrest, police seized his devices and found videos of his victims being assaulted and indecent images of other children.
The judge made an order for the forfeiture and destruction of the material.
Emma Lile, specialist prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service, mentioned: “ Ian Silvester’s crimes are particularly disturbing given the various roles he held over many years where he was entrusted with the responsibility of caring for and safeguarding children.
“He abused these positions in the worst possible way and took advantage of young boys. Silvester tried to claim that what he was doing was innocent, denying that his behaviour was sexually motivated.”
If you or someone has been affected by this story, contact Victim Support at no cost, confidential recommendation on 08 08 16 89 111 or go to their web site, Home – Victim Support.
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