Joshua Denson, who also called himself Jay Carter, had 105 indecent images and videos of the child and there is evidence he tried to arrange a threesome with her and another girl, also 15.
He wrote in one text: “Yeah, I feel bad enough I’m having sex with one girl underage but [it doesn’t matter] I guess.”
His victim said: “It’s made me feel very depressed. This has impacted my confidence and I constantly feel drained. I feel like my teenage years have been robbed from me because of Jay.”
At her worst she was taking cocaine a couple times per day after being introduced to it at 15.
She had to go through rehabilitation and is terrified that “the temptation will always be there now”.
She said she feels she has to be more wary in her current relationship and suffers flashbacks every few days, including of when one of Denson’s friends were stabbed.
She said: “I was helping his friend. There was a lot of blood and it was traumatic. Jay just sat there eating a sandwich, doing nothing.”
Denson always told her to tell others that she was older than she was and to act older than she was. He told his friends that she was 17 and his mum that she was 18.
She said: “I started doing things at 15-years-old like going out drinking in clubs. I feel like I grew up before I needed to and this was down to Jay’s influence.”
Police investigated in March 2020 when the victim’s mother raised concerns that she was in a relationship with an older man.
The victim had returned home with a small amount of cocaine in her bag and when her mother examined her phone she found photographs of her daughter in bed with an older man.
Victim Statement in Full
“What I have been through has impacted on my relationships. I am currently in a relationship, it has been a lot for my partner to take on. I feel when I have bad days from everything I have been through, I then put this on to my boyfriend.
I now feel like I have to be more wary in my relationship, I don’t always feel that I can truly be myself and have a laugh and a joke with my boyfriend.
I believe the reason I feel like this way is because when Jay was in my life I felt like I had to put on a front, Jay would always tell me to tell people I was older than I was, act older than I was.
I started to do things at 15 years old like going out drinking in clubs, I feel like I grew up before I needed to and this was down to Jay’s influence.
Every couple of days I experience flash backs of negative experiences I had with Jay.
One of the frequent flash backs I have is when one of Jay’s friends got stabbed I was helping his friend, there was a lot of blood and it was traumatic, Jay sat there eating a sandwich doing nothing.
Jay introduced me to cocaine from the age of 15 years old. This had a massive impact on me, I’ve gone through rehabilitation from taking drugs, at one point I heavily relied on taking cocaine, at its worst I was taking it a couple of times a day.
I feel like I have to remove myself from any situations where drugs are mentioned and I feel like the temptation will always be there now I have experimented with drugs from a young age.
I have never been the type of person to take drugs, before meeting Jay I had never taken cocaine and wouldn’t even consider taking it. It was down to Jay’s influence that I started to take cocaine.
Jay got me involved in things that I would never consider doing, I was doing things completely out of character for me. I have never been in trouble with the police or done anything criminal until meeting Jay and I feel like he dragged me down to his level.
If I could sum up how this crime has affected me, it’s made me feel very depressed. This has impacted my confidence and I constantly feel drained.
When I look back now I feel like I’ve been groomed. Jay was buying me expensive gifts, introducing me to drugs, this now makes me question why was he ever interested in a 15-year-old girl?
I feel like my teenage years have been robbed from me because of Jay.”
A text message exchange revealed the victim had been in a relationship with the man since she was 15.
An examination of Facebook Messenger exchanges revealed the victim had sold cocaine on Denson’s behalf and that she had made small purchases in local shops using counterfeit notes in order to get change in real money.
When the victim was spoken to by police for a second time she said the relationship had started when she was 15, her believing that Denson was 28, and that the relationship had become sexual before she had turned 16.
While under investigation for this case, Denson fled the country to Malta the day after being arrested for assaulting another woman, but was brought back.
He admitted sexual activity with a child, making indecent images of children and distributing and indecent image.
He was sentenced to five years and three months this week at Burnley crown court.
He was also given a lifetime Sexual Harm Prevention Order and order to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life.
PC Beth Turner said: “Denson is a wicked and manipulative individual who preyed upon and groomed the victim for his own perverted and sordid sexual interests.
“Reading her harrowing victim impact statement, you can see the impact Denson’s abhorrent behaviour had and continued to have on her. I would like to praise the victim and her family for the bravery they have shown, standing up against this controlling and nasty individual.
“I hope the outcome of this case and the sentence handed down to Denson will encourage other victims to come forward, knowing they will be listened to and believed, and we will do everything in our power to put their abuser before the courts.”