Former Grange Hill and London’s Burning actor John Alford has been jailed for eight-and-a-half years after he was found guilty of sexually assaulting two teenage girls during a party at a friend’s home.
The 54-year-old was found guilty of four counts of sexual activity with the younger girl, aged 14, and charges of sexual assault and assault by penetration relating to the second teenager, aged 15, at a property in Hertfordshire on April 9, 2022.
Jurors heard during the trial that the defendant, charged under his real name John Shannon, sexually assaulted the girls while they were drunk following a night out at the pub.
All of the offences took place at the home of a third girl, whose father was friends with Alford.
The former actor bought some £250 worth of food, alcohol and cigarettes from a nearby petrol station in the early hours of the morning, including a bottle of vodka which the victims subsequently drank, the court heard previously.
Alford then had sexual intercourse with the 14-year-old girl in the garden of the home and later in a downstairs toilet, and inappropriately touched the 15-year-old girl as she lay half asleep on the living room sofa, jurors heard.
Police received a third-party report from the 15-year-old girl’s mother outlining the allegations two days later, before the defendant was arrested.
The 15-year-old girl said in her evidence she had felt “absolutely sick” following the assault and had planned to keep the incident secret before having a “mental breakdown” to her friend’s mother on April 11.
Alford told jurors during the trial that all the allegations were “scandalous” and a “set-up”, and that there was no DNA evidence to support the assaults.
He said he had told police that the girls were “going to extort money” from him, and that he suffered from mental health issues including anxiety, depression and paranoia.
The younger girl said in a statement read to St Albans Crown Court during sentencing on Wednesday that being sexually assaulted has “affected me and my family in every way”.
The older girl said in her impact statement “this man destroyed my mental wellbeing”.
Mohammed Bashir, defending, said the defendant “is a man with no similar type of offences in his conviction history”.
He added: “The impact upon the girls has been great but it’s important to note that in that time Mr Shannon has not committed any further offences.”
Recorder Caroline Overton said the victim impact statements told of the “significant and ongoing impact of your offending on their lives”.
Alford shook his head from the dock as Ms Overton outlined the offences before sentencing.
She told the defendant his focus “has remained throughout on the impact to you and to your family”.
Ms Overton sentenced Alford to eight-and-a-half years in custody for the most serious sexual activity charge and told him he will serve up to two thirds in custody and serve the remainder on licence.
The defendant was also given jail terms of three years, six years and three years for the three other counts of sexual activity, four years for assault by penetration and eight months for sexual assault, all to run concurrently.
She also told the defendant he will be subject to a restraining order and she made a sexual harm prevention order.
Alford was previously convicted of supplying illicit drugs to former News of the World journalist Mazher Mahmood, who was known as the “fake sheikh”, following a trial in 1999, and was jailed for nine months.
Jurors heard he also received a payment of £500,000 from the news organisation in relation to allegations that his phone had been hacked.
Alford was convinced by Mahmood to meet a fake Arabian prince at London’s Savoy hotel in 1997 on the promise of receiving new acting roles and lucrative public appearances, before later being asked to source cocaine for the individual.
He later filed lawsuits against the News Of The World and its editors with claims that he was subjected to landline wire-taps, voicemail hacking and the wide-ranging theft of his personal data for use in their headline stories.
Mahmood was jailed in 2016 for tampering with evidence in the collapsed drugs trial of pop star Tulisa Contostavlos, which led to Alford’s conviction being examined by the Criminal Cases Review Commission.
Lawyer Chris White, for the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “John Shannon was fully aware of the girl’s ages, yet he chose to exploit them – giving them alcohol and then committing sexual offences against them.
“We commend the victims for reporting what happened. They were supported to give evidence against Shannon: their statements were recorded and played to the jury during the trial, and we arranged for screens to be provided so they did not have to face the defendant during cross examination.
“Shannon’s sentence today sends a clear message – we will pursue those who target young people for their own gratification.”
Investigator Laura Harrison, from Hertfordshire Constabulary’s sexual offences investigation team, said: “I want to praise the bravery of our two victims for coming forward and reporting John Shannon’s horrific crimes to police.
“Shannon has not shown any of signs of remorse, from his interviews in custody, to the trial which his victims had to endure.
“I hope that our victims are now able to move on in their lives knowing that Shannon will now be spending a considerable amount of time behind bars.
“This result reinforces the message that Hertfordshire Constabulary has a zero tolerance to crimes of this nature and I hope Shannon is able to reflect on his behaviour and the trauma his actions have caused, not only for the victims but for their families as well.”
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