Tag: child abuse

Outrage as child sex offender running for city council holds press conference outside Fresno school, cops called

An elementary school in Fresno was forced to file a police report after a child sex offender running for city council held a press conference just steps away.

Rene Campos, 41, a candidate in Fresno City Council‘s District 7 race, spoke Friday on a street outside St. John’s Cathedral to address outrage over his past, the Fresno Bee reported.

He was about 10 feet away from Big Picture Elementary School, a public charter school, which later contacted local cops.

Until 2015, under Jessica’s Law, California prohibited registered sex offenders from living within 2,000ft of any school or park in the state.

The law was later declared unconstitutional by the California Supreme Court, which ruled that residency restrictions must be applied on a case-by-case basis.

It remains unclear whether Campos is subject to any specific court orders, restraining orders or individualized restrictions related to his offense, or whether his limitations fall solely under California’s general sex offender registration requirements.

Campos, who is running to unseat incumbent Nelson Esparza, has not publicly clarified the scope of any conditions that may apply to him. The Post reached out for comment.

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Covid Lockdowns May Have Permanently Stunted Brain Development in Children, Alarming Study Finds

The Covid lockdowns may have inflicted long-term harm on children’s brain development, an alarming new study has found. The Mail has the story.

The research, led by the University of East Anglia, found that the pandemic hampered children’s ability to regulate their behaviour, stay focused and adapt to new situations – skills known collectively as executive functions.

The greatest impact was seen among pupils in reception, aged four to five, when the first lockdowns began in March 2020.

This age bracket is a crucial stage when children normally learn to socialise, follow routines and navigate the busy world of the classroom, but millions of youngsters were forced to stay home and be taught either online, or by their parents.

The children in this cohort are now around 10 to 11 years old, in their final year of primary school. 

The research, published in the journal Child Development, found these children showed less growth in their self-regulatory and cognitive flexibility scores over time compared to a second group of children who were in preschool when the pandemic started.

The researchers from the University of East Anglia, Lancaster University and Durham University say these children may still be feeling the effects years later.

Scientists were already running a long-term study tracking youngsters from toddlerhood to early school years when the Covid pandemic hit.

The study followed 139 children aged between two-and-a-half and six-and-a-half years old over several years, including 94 families who joined the study before Covid struck.

This meant that they had a baseline of children’s abilities before the pandemic began, which allowed them to track exactly how development changed during and after the lockdowns.

Using a standardised assessment called the Minnesota Executive Function Scale, they were able to measure the same cognitive skills at regular intervals.

Lead researcher Professor John Spencer, from UEA’s School of Psychology, said: “Children who were in reception when the country shut down showed much slower growth in key self-regulation and cognitive flexibility skills over the next few years than children who were still in preschool.

“Reception is a critical year for peer socialisation. It’s when children learn classroom norms and build early friendships that shape their confidence.”

For the cohort who started school in 2020, classrooms were closed, routines collapsed overnight and opportunities for social interaction were severely limited.

“Without these experiences, children’s self-regulatory skills didn’t develop as quickly year-on-year after the lockdowns ended,” he said.

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Longtime Justice Department Employee Arrested on Child Pornography Charges

Timothy Parsons, a longtime staffer with the Department of Justice, has been arrested on charges of child pornography.

Multiple sources confirmed the arrest to CBS News, noting that the FBI searched Parsons’ home in Bethesda, Maryland, on Monday for potential child pornographic material:

An FBI agent alleged Parsons answered questions from investigators and acknowledged receiving a message with child sex abuse material from another person in February 2019.

According to an FBI affidavit, Parsons received multiple videos and two images with child abuse material. The affidavit said Parsons told investigators that he had deleted those messages.

Parsons allegedly said, “That is so hot” in response to a sexually charged image.

A Justice Department spokesperson said that Parsons has been placed on leave as the investigation unfolds.

“The employee is on leave and appropriate disciplinary action will be taken in accordance with standard procedure. While we cannot comment on personnel matters, we hold all of our employees to the highest standards of ethical conduct at all times,” said the statement.

Investigators uncovered Parsons’ alleged crimes while handling the case of former child psychotherapist Victor Blythe.

“The court filings said the images sent to Parsons were sent by a suspected child exploiter whose case matches details of Blythe’s 2025 criminal case,” noted CBS News.

According to the FBI affidavit, agents also seized several devices belonging to Parsons when searching his residence.

“The FBI executed the warrants at (Parson’s) Bethesda residence and seized several devices belonging to Parsons, who lives there by himself and was alone in the residence when the FBI arrived,” it said. “Investigators conducted an onsite preview of Parson’s devices and identified no (child abuse material). A full forensic examination of the devices consistent with the search warrant is pending.”

Parsons is scheduled to appear in court on Friday and has not yet entered a plea.

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Politician Rory Amon admits sex with a 13-year-old boy in a ‘dirty, hidden car park toilet’ – as he faces rape charges and jury hears his explanation

A teen lied about his age to a former Liberal MP before the pair had sex on the floor of a dirty car park bathroom, jurors have been told.

Rory Amon was a 27-year-old aspiring politician when he met the teenager at his Sydney apartment block in July 2017.

He admits having sex with the 13-year-old on one occasion at night in the underground car park bathroom.

But this was far from a case of a man lurking in a space for children, a NSW Supreme Court jury was told on Tuesday.

Amon met the teen on a gay dating website where users had to be over 18 to sign up, defence barrister Matthew Johnston SC said.

‘This is not a case … where there is an adult who’s on a chatroom that’s frequented by 13-year-olds and is tricking them into a meeting,’ he told the jury.

The alleged victim admitted lying about his age, once in signing up to the website and again when chatting to Amon, Mr Johnston said.

This was the only reason his client had met the boy, he argued.

If the teen had said he was 15 – as he claimed in the witness box – the former politician would have ceased chatting to him immediately, the barrister said. 

Instead, the 13-year-old bolstered his lies by sending photos and messages, which made him seem older with the intent of meeting Amon for sex, Mr Johnston said.

‘I’m raising that not to, in any way, say that (the alleged victim’s) to blame for anything,’ he told the jury.

‘He was 13 … adolescents make stupid decisions all the time.’

But the jury was urged by prosecutors to reject Amon’s evidence he thought the teen was above the age of consent.

‘Using your common sense and experience, you may have very little difficulty finding this accused is guilty,’ crown prosecutor Meaghan Fleeton said.

It would have been obvious to Amon when he met the boy in person he was under 16, she argued.

She said the intelligent, articulate former MP had lied about his age to manipulate the boy before pursuing and sexually assaulting him.

The alleged victim was a child with no sexual experience at the time, she said.

Now 36, Amon has pleaded not guilty to 10 child sexual abuse, child rape and indecent assault charges.

He admits meeting the boy for sex once, but denies allegations of a second meet-up where a towel was brought to the bathroom.

Mr Johnston suggested the incident had ‘grown’ in the complainant’s mind over the years as he grappled with its impact.

‘Some witnesses – they believe they’re telling the truth … but they’re genuinely mistaken about some things,’ he said.

But the Crown portrayed the key witness as honest and who broke down when testifying.

‘You saw (him) get upset when shown the photos of the car park toilet – that dirty, hidden car park toilet – where he had his first sexual experience,’ Ms Fleeton said.

‘It was a significant and life-changing course of events.’

There would have been a window of opportunity in July 2017 for both of these ‘hasty hook-ups’ to have taken place, she argued.

Soon after the alleged sexual abuse, he gave some details of what occurred to his mother, friends, school counsellor and psychologist, she noted.

The complainant first became aware of Amon’s identity in 2020 through a COVID-19 announcement when the former Liberal was a councillor.

The two reconnected on Snapchat in 2019 and then on Grindr in 2022 when Amon sent him some photos, including one in his volunteer firefighter uniform.

The trial continues on Wednesday.

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Hundreds of cases of child abuse involving beliefs in witchcraft and evil spirits go unreported every year in UK, experts reveal

Hundreds of cases of group ritual abuse against children are going unreported every year in the UK, a leading researcher has revealed. 

Victims have been contacting support services to describe abuse at the hands of paedophile rings who use claims of witchcraft and possession to cower them into submission.

In a twisted inversion of reality, acts of rape, sexual abuse or torture are then characterised as ‘cleansing’ rituals to rid the victim of a demon or evil spirit – with perpetrators sometimes wearing costumes or masks.

While so-called ‘organised ritual abuse’ is described as a ‘rare but real phenomenon’ in Britain, police are concerned that it is heavily underreported and rarely appears in official data.

Dr Elly Hanson, a clinical psychologist and researcher, said victims often do not report ritual abuse to police because they feared their claims would appear too fantastical to be believed.

Others have become ‘disassociated’, a process that sees abuse victims adopt a different identity as a way of separating themselves from the reality of what has happened to them, or simply feel too traumatised to ‘give a coherent narrative’.

‘There are so many hurdles facing victims that nearly all of them end up falling out of the system,’ Dr Hanson told a media briefing held today by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC).

An analysis of police data by the NPCC found that just seven ritual abuse cases were investigated in 2024 out of 4,450 instances of child abuse, marking just 0.2 per cent of all investigations.

However, the National Association for People Abused in Childhood (NAPAC) found that out of a sample of 36,700 calls to their helpline between July 2016 and January 2025, 1,311 (3.57 per cent) mentioned ritual abuse.

Dr Hanson said organised ritual abuse typically involves family members and starts when children are young.

Perpetrators frequently do not believe the supernatural belief systems they are espousing and simply use them as a means too gain control over their victims, the psychologist explained.

This form of abuse regularly involves torture or extreme acts of violence and may end in murder or animal sacrifice.

While beliefs about witchcraft and spirit possession are often linked to ethnic groups, such as those with links to sub-Saharan Africa, many offenders have British backgrounds.

According to Dr Hanson, ‘cultural sensitivities’ are one factor holding back police and social services, but she believes the issue works both ways.

‘You’ve potentially got a desire to be culturally sensitive with certain cultural communities, then you’ve got the other direction where someone who is British and not from a particular community they are not seen as someone who might be suffering ritual abuse,’ she said.

One recent case saw a seven-strong child sex ring in Glasgow prey on children as young as 13 in a drug den nicknamed the ‘Beastie House’.

The trial heard how the group performed ‘spells’ on the children and convinced them they had been metamorphosed into various animals.

Richard Fewkes, the director of the NPCC’s Hydrant programme targeting child sexual abuse, said the case was an example of paedophiles using claims of witchcraft as a means of control.

‘Those individuals did not necessarily believe in witchcraft, but they used the ritual of it to control the children,’ he said.

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Brother of female Louisiana mayor convicted of having sex with boy, 16, is rapist who targeted underage child

The brother of a disgraced Louisiana mayor convicted of having sex with her teen son’s best friend has admitted to raping a young girl in a years-long abuse campaign. 

Brandon Lee Roberts, 40, the brother of mayor Misty Roberts, pleaded guilty in November to sexually assaulting a teenage girl and another young woman over several years. 

The guilty plea on seven counts of rape saw Brandon sentenced this week to a total of 32 years in prison, reports KPLCTV. 

Prosecutors said the abuse began when one of the victims was just 13 and went on for years before Brandon was eventually arrested in October 2024. 

His arrest came just two months after his older sister was arrested after she was caught engaging in sexual activity with her son’s 16-year-old friend at a drunken pool party at her home.

Roberts, the former mayor of DeRidder, Louisiana, was convicted on Tuesday as a jury found her guilty of indecent behavior and carnal knowledge of a minor. 

The mother-of-two wept uncontrollably as she was convicted, shaking her head in disbelief as she was warned she faces up to 17 years behind bars when she is sentenced next month.  

Once an influential mayor of the tiny western Louisiana town, she will also be required to register as a sex offender. 

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Who is Misty Roberts? Rape-accused former Louisiana mayor caught with a minor by her kids

Misty Roberts, the former mayor of DeRidder, is facing a charge of third-degree rape following allegations stemming from a 2024 incident that has now gone to trial. According to testimony and video evidence played for jurors, Roberts’ own children reportedly told police they witnessed troubling behavior involving their mother and a 16-year-old boy during what was described as a boozy pool party. In one interview shown in court, Roberts’ son told investigators that he saw his mother having sex with the minor through a crack in a window. However, when questioned later about his recollection, he told the court that he ‘couldn’t be certain that’s what he saw’ that night, according to KPLC-TV.

Jurors were also shown photos from the party, including images of minors holding drinks and a photograph prosecutors described as “lewd.” The image showed Roberts wearing a bikini while the teen victim looked up at her smiling.

As per KPLC-TV, Roberts’ daughter also took the stand as jurors watched her recorded interview with investigators. In that interview, she said she saw her mother and the young man “on top of each other” on the night in question.

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California Child Molester With Three Life Sentences Paroled Under Newsom-Backed Law, Then Re-Arrested On New Charges

In California, justice is a revolving door—but only if you’re the criminal. Victims, meanwhile, are left standing outside wondering when their nightmare will return. The Golden State’s progressive experiment in “rehabilitation” has produced no shortage of cautionary tales, but few as stomach-turning as what unfolded this month in Sacramento.

A 64-year-old man who spent decades behind bars for unspeakable crimes against children was granted his freedom. Not because he’d served his time. Not because new evidence exonerated him. But because California decided that monsters deserve second chances too.

David Allen Funston was convicted in 1999 on 16 counts of kidnapping and child molestation. His hunting ground was the suburbs of Sacramento, where he prowled neighborhood streets in his car, searching for prey. His weapons of choice: Barbie dolls and candy. His victims: at least eight children—seven girls and one boy—ranging in age from three to seven years old.

One victim, a five-year-old immigrant girl who barely spoke English, was assaulted and abandoned fifty miles from her home. The judge who sentenced Funston called him “the monster parents fear the most.” The court handed down three consecutive life sentences.

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Democrat Registered Sex Offender PEDO Running For City Council In Fresno California?!

A registered sex offender, Rene Campos, has launched a campaign for Fresno’s District 7 City Council seat, sparking intense local and national backlash. Campos, who pleaded no contest to a 2018 misdemeanor charge for possessing child sex abuse material and remains on California’s sex offender registry, argues that he has rehabilitated and wants to turn his “lived experience” with the justice system into reforms focused on public safety.

Campos has told local media that “Fresno deserves leaders who are honest from the very beginning” and says he is “putting [his] life out there,” insisting that people “are not [their] past” and that his conviction gives him unique insight into fixing laws from “the inside out.” California law does not bar registered sex offenders who have completed their sentences and regained voting rights from running for local office, and Fresno County’s registrar has confirmed that Campos is legally eligible to appear on the ballot if he files in time.

Opponents in the crowded District 7 race, including fellow candidate Nav Gurm, contend that Campos’ status should effectively disqualify him from office, pointing out that a registered sex offender cannot visit school campuses and questioning how someone under such restrictions could fully represent families and children in the district. Several Fresno city council members have also said they plan to pursue an ordinance to prevent registered sex offenders from holding city office in the future, arguing that people convicted of crimes against children should not serve in positions where minors regularly visit city facilities.

On social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, reaction has been overwhelmingly negative, with viral posts describing Campos as a “literal sex offender” running on a “public safety” message and questioning how he can campaign on protecting children while being barred from school grounds. Commenters on high-traffic accounts and local news reels have called the candidacy “insane” and “only in California,” with many users demanding that lawmakers “change the law” so that registered child sex offenders cannot seek public office at all.

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Son turns on his lawmaker dad for using ‘Epstein loophole’ to avoid jail for allegedly touching kids: ‘Inexplicable trauma’

The son of a disgraced lawmaker has turned on his father for using an “Epstein loophole” to avoid spending time behind bars for allegedly touching children.

Speaking out for the first time, Robert Scrivner branded California’s mental health diversion law a “flawed system” after his father Zack dodged getting locked up.

“My own father, who is an elected official in Kern County, assaulted my siblings and myself and was granted mental health diversion,” Robert said during a press conference by State Senator Shannon Grove, who wants to rescind the loophole.

On Tuesday, Grove announced Senate Bill 1373, which would set limits on certain crimes for the mental health diversion law.

“My bill will ensure that those who commit violent crimes, such as attempted murder of a child, assault resulting in death and domestic violence, are no longer eligible for a mental health diversion program,” Grove said.

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