St Helens sex offender has money confiscated that he tried to escape with

A man jailed in December for sexual offences against children has today (Monday 6 June) been ordered to pay back £10,000 he had withdrawn in an attempt to evade capture.

On Thursday 2 September, police executed a warrant at David Morris’ address on Sandfield Road, Eccleston, St Helens, and seized his phone, computer and other digital equipment. He was arrested on suspicion of possession and distribution of indecent images of children, questioned by police and bailed with conditions.

The following day, Friday 3 September, Merseyside Police received information regarding David Morris and his partner Julie Morris having committed sexual offences against a child, and it was further reported the couple were planning to abscond.

Officers acted immediately and located Julie and David Morris at an address in Hindley where they were arrested. The couple were found to be in possession of £10,000 cash and their campervan was packed with their belongings indicating that they were about to abscond.

On 22 December, David Morris, 52, of Sandfield Road, Eccleston, was jailed – alongside his partner Julie Morris - for 16 years, plus four years on extended licence and given an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order. He was also ordered to sign the sex offenders' register for life.

He had pleaded guilty to seven counts of rape of a child under 13, sexual activity with a child, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, sexual communications with a child, taking indecent photographs of a child, possession of indecent images of a child, distribution of indecent images of a child, possession of prohibited images of a child, possession of extreme pornographic images and voyeurism.

Morris was made subject of a confiscation order under the Proceeds of Crime Act today at Liverpool Crown Court, and ordered to pay the £10,000 he was found in possession of when trying to abscond. The cash was seized by police and will now be split between Merseyside Police and the Home Office to be reinvested in policing.

Detective Inspector Lisa Milligan said: “Morris thought that he and Julie Morris could evade capture and avoid paying for their heinous crimes. They were wrong.

“Officers from Merseyside Police acted swiftly to detain the pair and seize this cash, and I’m pleased to say it will now be reinvested in policing, helping our officers continue to put offenders before the courts and protect vulnerable people in Merseyside from harm.”

Det Insp Milligan added: “The offences committed by Julie and David Morris have had a devastating impact on the victims and their families, who continue to live with the psychological torment they both inflicted.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank the victims who came forward and their families, whose help was vital in putting the offenders behind bars and protecting others from their offending.

“I would also like to pay tribute to the investigation team and all those officers involved in ensuring the attempts of David and Julie Morris to avoid justice were extremely short-lived.

“This case illustrates very clearly how committed our officers are to ensuring people who exploit children in any way are stopped and put before the courts.”

Any child, or young person who is a victim of sexual abuse, or anyone who knows of a child being abused, is urged to come forward and report this to police.

Merseyside Police has a specialist team committed to dealing with all forms of child abuse, who will treat any information from you extremely seriously, and will follow up every report and any information that comes in.

If you have any suspicions about children who could be at risk of child abuse, please report it to us. We can make an assessment and take the necessary action.

Call 999 if you suspect such an incident is in progress, or pass any other information via 101, @MerPolCC on Twitter, or anonymously via 0800 555 111.

If you are a child or young person suffering sexual or physical abuse, the following organisations can also provide help and support:

NSPCC – call 0808 800 5000 or e-mail help@nspcc.org.uk

Childline – call 0800 1111

Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre Cheshire and Merseyside, who can be contacted on 01925 221 546 or 0330 363 0063 or Rape and Sexual Assault Merseyside (RASA) on 0151 558 1801