Former teacher jailed for historic sexual offences

Nation.Cymru staff

A former teacher has been jailed for 10 years for a series of historic sexual offences against a child carried out over a period of around six years.

Michel Marie Antoine Baucage, 77, of Plas Avenue, Prestatyn, was convicted following a trial of four counts of assaulting a child by touching, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, and two counts of engaging in sexual activity with a child.

Sentencing Baucage, Recorder Robin Rouch said the offences involved a clear abuse of trust and described how the victim had been groomed over a prolonged period.

The court heard the victim, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, later realised he had been “groomed over a long period of time”, causing lasting trauma for both him and his family.

In a statement read to the court by prosecutor Matthew Dunford, the victim described suffering sleep problems, anxiety and depression as a result of the abuse.

He said he experienced “fear, confusion and shame at a very young age” and had gone on to struggle with trust issues in later life.

Defending, Matthew Dunford said Baucage had only one previous conviction for a motoring offence and had significant health issues, including cancer treatment which led to his early retirement from teaching.

The judge acknowledged the defendant’s ill health but said it had to be balanced against “the harm caused to the victim and the public interest in an appropriate sentence”.

Recorder Rouch said Baucage had shown no remorse, although he had displayed some empathy towards the victim during the trial.

As well as the 10-year prison sentence, Baucage was made subject to an indefinite restraining order preventing contact with the victim, a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and indefinite notification requirements under the sex offenders register.

Courage

Following the sentencing, Detective Constable Rebecca Watkiss of North Wales Police’s Protecting Vulnerable People Unit praised the victim’s courage in coming forward.

“I welcome today’s sentence, providing a clear message to all victims of paedophiles such as Baucage that whilst their crimes may be historic, we will treat all reports of abuse with the utmost seriousness,” she said.

“Whenever possible, we will bring perpetrators before the court and hold them to account.”