Man who groomed and raped vulnerable girl jailed

A man who subjected a vulnerable young girl to years of sustained sexual abuse has been jailed for 12 years.

David Fish, 47, raped, wounded and forced the girl to take part in sexually explicit videos over the course of three years between 2007 and 2010.

He was charged and prosecuted under the National Crime Agency's (NCA) Operation Stovewood, which examines historic allegations of sexual abuse in Rotherham.

Fish, of Russell Road, Rotherham, was jailed at Sheffield Crown Court after pleading guilty to two sexual offences and being convicted of further charges of of rape, unlawful wounding and causing or inciting child prostitution.

Steve Palmer, from the NCA, said: “Though the victim will always live with what Fish did, I hope his sentencing will bring her a measure of peace and allow her to move forward.”

The court heard Fish, who was in his 20s at the time, began grooming the girl when she was 15 and in care.

He would ply her with drink and drugs before sexually abusing her and taking indecent images and videos of her, which were later found on his computer despite him denying their existence.

The victim said Fish would turn violent, on one occasion smashing a mug against her head and leaving her in need of stiches.

Jeanette Smith, specialist prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service, said the "cruel" abuse the victim received “can cause lifelong physical and emotional trauma".

“Fish used gifts, drugs and alcohol to groom, coerce and manipulate a child into entering a relationship with him, all for his own sexual gratification," she said.

“The way he used threats and violence to then control the victim and enforce his demands for sex was completely despicable."

Operation Stovewood is the single biggest investigation of its kind, looking at allegations of abuse in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013.

NCA officers have identified more than 1,100 victims, and to date 37 people have been convicted, a spokesperson said.

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