Pensioner giving up fight for justice over alleged horrific punishment at teenage detention centre

    Rob Jones

Fifty years after allegedly suffering horrific punishment at a teenage detention centre, a Teesside pensioner is giving up on his fight for justice.

Rod Jones, well known for his mercy missions to help children in Romania, is one of thousands of former inmates who have given evidence to police investigations of historic abuse at the centres.

 

But the reformed former armed robber believed the probes, including one into Kirklevington Grange, are “taking too long” and says most of the officers who carried out the alleged abuse are now dead.

The 69-year-old was an inmate of Medomsley, in County Durham, when he was 17, and tells of the brutal punishment he claims he suffered for “getting into a fight” with one of the guards.

“They threw me in a laundry basket and strapped it shut,” he said.

“Then they tipped me over and over the quarter of a mile to the shower block where they put a hose in the basket.

“I could feel myself drowning. It was like water-boarding.

“I lost consciousness and the next thing I knew I was tipped out onto the floor of my cell.”

Rod, who has run the charity Convoy Aid International for 26 years, claims he also suffered “beating after beating” at the centre.

“Once they even threw a rope into my cell and told me if I didn’t hang myself they would do it for me.”

In desperation to escape the centre Rod, from Middlesbrough , says he admitted to more than 100 offences he never committed.

“But it got me to Borstal,” he said.

The investigation into assaults on inmates at Medomsley, near Consett, is now the biggest child abuse inquiry in the UK.

And the staggering 1,351 men who have reported being physically or sexually assaulted while at the reform centre make up half of all alleged victims in the country, it has been revealed.

“I’ve never got over it, but I’ve had enough now,” Rod told The Gazette.

“They’ve taken years and years over this investigation and I honesty believe they are going to knock it about until we’re all too old.

“The majority of prison officers who did this are now probably dead or are in their 80s and 90s. I don’t think any of them will ever see the inside of a court room.

“I think the whole investigation is a waste of time.”

Rod says he is now dropping a legal claim and withdrawing from the police inquiry.

He believes the only justice he and the other victims can ever hope to achieve is “for the Home Office to admit it happened and say ‘We’re sorry’.

“But we’ll never get that.”

As reported, almost 250 former inmates of HMP Kirklevington Grange have also come forward with allegations of abuse spanning four decades when it operated as a youth detention centre.

The allegations span from the 1960s up until the 1990s and two men were arrested as part of the investigations.

However, both have since been released without charge.

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Medomsley victim: We'll all be dead by the time the inquiry's finished

A VICTIM of brutal physical and sexual abuse at the Medomsley Detention Centre is withdrawing his police statement, saying he believes he will be dead before he gets closure.

Rod Jones, from Middlesbrough, says he is dropping a legal claim and withdrawing from the police inquiry because he feels it is being drawn out for too long, and said he believed most of the 1,351 victims would be dead by the time they received an apology, or any compensation.

The 69-year-old was an inmate of Medomsley, near Consett, aged 17, and believed he would end up dead as he underwent brutal assaults after hitting a guard in self-defence.

Mr Jones, who now runs a charity, Convoy Aid International, said guards threw a rope in his cell one night and told him that if he didn’t hang himself, they would do it the next morning. He was also nearly drowned.

In fear, he contacted the police in Middlesbrough and said he had committed over 130 burglaries – which wasn’t true – just so he could be moved away from Medomsley. Instead of spending another three months in the infamous centre he opted instead for three years in borstal.

Mr Jones said: “I get a letter updating me on the investigation every month and I just feel it drags it all up. What I underwent wasn’t just abuse, it was torture. This inquiry is taking too long. There’s no point coming to the cemetery and saying sorry, is there?”

Durham Police’s Det Supt Paul Goundry, senior investigating officer, said victims could opt out of the monthly letter.

He added: “From the outset we said this would be a lengthy and complex inquiry. While the investigative phase is now virtually complete, there is still a huge amount of work to do before the CPS can advise on any potential criminal charges.

We understand the frustration many victims must feel but all we can do is ask them to be patient while we continue to progress the investigation.” The Crown Prosecution Service are expected to decide later this year whether or not to bring criminal charges, in the country’s biggest investigation into historic sex abuse.

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Retired vicar accused of indecent assault and buggery denies he was ever an exorcist, court told

• 08:30, 3 Aug 2016
• By Laura Hill

Former Archdeacon of Auckland, George Granville Gibson, denies eight charges of indecent assault which allegedly took place in the 1970s and 80s 

George Granville Gibson

A jury was reminded of a vicar’s good character and successful career with the Church of England as the sex offences case against him was brought to a close.

The former Archdeacon of Auckland, George Granville Gibson, 80, denies eight charges of indecent assault and one count of buggery which prosecutors allege took place when he was a vicar at St Clare’s Church in Newton Aycliffe.

Judge Christopher Prince summed up the case against the former vicar on Tuesday, and repeated the retired clergyman’s claims that he was never an exorcist.

The retired former Archdeacon of Durham is said to have abused his position and indecently touching men and boys as young as 12.

Gibson is accused of indecently touching a young man at Medomsley Detention Centre, and the court has heard evidence that senior church leaders were made aware of his actions, but nothing was done.

Judge Prince said: “Everybody is born with a good character, some people retain that and some people lost it.

Prosecuting, Paul Cleasby said: “The Crown won’t challenge the good character and career of the defendant and don’t seek to do so.”

Judge Prince outlined Gibson’s successful career with the Church of England which led to him rising through the ranks to becoming Archdeacon of Auckland “effectively second to the Bishop of Durham”.

The Judge also mentioned Gibson’s early career as an organiser for the Boys’ Brigade.

“He said that he has had contact with young people since 1962 until the end of his career with the ministry in 2001,” he told the jury.

Judge Prince reiterated Gibson’s denials of ever being attracted to young boys or working as an exorcist.

He said: “He told you that was not an exorcist, but that he dealt with paranormal activity as a vicar.
“He said he had never had homosexual thoughts about boys, only about men.”

Judge Prince is set to finish summing the case on Wednesday at Durham Crown Court. He urged the jury to look only at the evidence when coming to their verdicts and said: “Emotion is the enemy of reason, you must put emotion to one side.”

Gibson, of Worsley Park, Darlington, denies all charges.

The trial continues.

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Former Archdeacon of Auckland Granville Gibson tells trial he wrapped legs around alleged abuse victim

A FORMER minister admitted for the first time today that he had wrapped his legs around an 18-year-old who was performing community service work at the church.

Cross-examined on the fifth day of his trial at Durham Crown Court, where he denies six counts of indecent assault and one other serious offence, retired clergyman Granville Gibson, said there was nothing sexual in the contact.

The 80-year old former Archdeacon of Auckland, who now lives in Darlington, is said to have committed the offences earlier in his Church career when he was a minister at St Clare’s at Newton Aycliffe in the late 1970s and early 80s.

Two alleged victims were teenage males while a third was a young churchman in his mid-20s at the time.

Mr Gibson told the court that because of the difficult situation of offenders who were doing community service at the church he would bring some “light-hearted banter” into the situation by making jokes and “acting on” and have a “throw about a bit” at times.

He said: “It was common garden acting on really, as I did from time to time as I did with my own kids.”

Prosecutor Paul Cleasby said: “But these were young offenders. Did you think it was appropriate to be touching them?”

Mr Gibson replied: “I did what I thought was appropriate at the time.”

He had earlier said that he had no recollection of the 18-year-old, who complained of being abused by him.

Mr Cleasby reminded him the victim had alleged that the abuse started when Mr Gibson sat on the edge of desk and wrapped his legs around him and pulled him toward him in a sexually aroused state.

He replied: “I do remember the desk. I do remember sitting on it and from time to time as he passed me he would stretch out with his hand and I would do the same - and yes occasionally I would put my legs around his lower legs and we would have a tussle.”

When Mr Cleasby said that this was the first time in the whole proceedings that he had made the confession, Mr Gibson said: “It’s the first time I’ve been asked.”

The married father-of-four is accused of committing one of the offences during a surprise unsupervised visit see the teenager, shortly after he was admitted to the former Medomsley Detention Centre, near Consett.

Another victim who attended the church said he was regularly abused by Mr Gibson, at the time believing he was being comforted by the “touchy feely” churchman.

Mr Gibson said he accepted cuddling the boy, by “bending down and giving him a hug”.

Asked how long the hug was, he said: “Not very long, but I didn’t have a stopwatch with me.”

The trial continues.

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Operation Seabrook - Medomsley Detention Centre update 11/07/2016

‘Operation Seabrook’ is the criminal investigation into allegations of sexual and physical abuse perpetrated by staff against detainees at Medomsley Detention Centre near Consett, County Durham.

It was launched in August 2013 and is investigating incidents which happened over many years, principally the 1970's and 1980's. 

The three main aims of the investigation are to ensure support is provided for victims so they are in a better place after contacting the police; to gain the fullest understanding of how Medomsley operated during those years and to secure evidence so that any potential offenders are brought to justice.

The Senior Investigating Officer (SIO) is Det Supt Paul Goundry and Det Con Tracey Etchells is the victim co-ordinator.

Anyone needing to make contact with them in writing can email  operation.seabrook@durham.pnn.police.uk

The 'Seabrook' team has now heard from more than 1,340 former inmates at Medomsley who have reported they were abused while detained at the centre.

All of the surviving main suspects - 31 in total - have been identified, interviewed and prosecution files submitted to the CPS for advice.  This advice will then identify those individuals who are likely to be charged and also which victims or witnesses are likely to give evidence.



Mr Goundry (pictured above) said; "Our focus remains around obtaining third party information for the 130+ victims who have been identified as potential court witnesses. This is a slow process as we are reliant on other organisations to check their records and often it takes time for them to respond."

Seabrook is also part of Justice Goddard's Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA). It was announced last November that Medomsley would be a case study within the ‘Children in Custodial Institutions’ investigations .

The inquiry is in regular liaison with the police to progress this.. It is also important to remember that the inquiry will be focused on institutional failures rather than individual criminal guilt.

Important - If you are a victim and your contact details have changed, for example, you have moved house or have a new phone number then please email the Seabrook team or call them via 101 so they can update their records.

Durham Constabulary continues to work with various organisations to provide the best possible support for victims. Access to support is available without the need to contact the police for those who feel unable to do so.

Independent Psychotherapist Zoe Lodrick

The following organisations can be contacted independently of the police for support .

NSPCC FREEPHONE HELPLINE (24 hrs):
National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children                                                                                    0808 800 5000
The helpline is available for anyone who has concerns about a child or anyone including adults who wish to discuss their own experience of abuse as a child or young person.
Contact can also be made via e mail : help@nspcc.org.uk  or by text 88858
Contact can be made anonymously if the caller so wishes.

NAPAC
National Association for People Abused in ChildhoodFreephone from all landlines and mobile networks 0808 801 0331.
Calls do not show on your bill; lines are open 10am to 9pm Monday - Thursday, and 10am to 6pm on Friday. NAPAC is unable to take messages or ring back. 

The Meadows:
The Meadows Sexual Assault Referral Centre (Darlington and Co Durham) 0191 301 8554
The Meadows will accept calls between the hours of 9am-3.30 pm Monday to Friday and can arrange one-to-one counselling sessions and can make referrals to similar centres throughout the UK.

Counselling does not involve discussing what has happened in relation to the assault, it aims to help you work through your feelings to aid the healing process.
Staff at the Meadows will not contact the police without your consent unless there are current concerns in respect of a child or vulnerable adult.

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Clergyman accepts hugging boy, but denies indecency claims

 DENIALS: Accused ex-Archdeacon of Auckland, Granville Gibson.

A FORMER senior clergyman has denied committing any indecent acts with male teenagers, although he did accept hugging one troubled young churchgoer in "comfort".

Granville Gibson was giving evidence on the fourth day of his trial at Durham Crown Court, where he denies six counts of indecent assault and one other serious sexual offence.

Two other offences of indecent assault, also denied by Mr Gibson, have now been dropped by the Crown, with agreement of the defence and Judge Christopher Prince, as an expediency to ease the ultimate jury deliberations.

The 80-year-old former Archdeacon of Auckland, from Darlington, is said to have committed the offences earlier in his career in the Church, when he was the minister at St Clare’s, at Newton Aycliffe, in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Two alleged victims were teenage males, while a third was a young churchman, in his mid-20s, at the time.

Mr Gibson said he had no recollection of one of the complainants, an 18-year-old who was performing community service work at the church in the late seventies.

He is accused of committing one of the offences when later making a surprise unsupervised visit to see the 18-year-old shortly after he was admitted to the former Medomsley Detention Centre, near Consett.

The court heard that in a police interview he said he had never been to the detention centre, but he then claimed he could not recall the occasion, when asked about an entry in an old diary found in his loft, detailing the visit and naming the complainant as the person he was going to see, alongside directions to Medomsley, all in his handwriting.

Asked about a “rebellious” young churchgoer who he agreed he had “taken under his wing” at the behest of his family, Mr Gibson said he would often hug him to comfort the boy when he was upset.

But he denied that this was followed by any further physical contact in the form of pressing himself against the boy, while aroused, or touching him over his clothing in the crotch area.

During questioning by his counsel, Andrew Stubbs, he was asked about a co-counselling church movement, whose meetings Mr Gibson attended as a young clergyman.

The court heard the movement advocated full body contact hugging, which Mr Gibson agreed caused him sexual arousal, whether with a man or woman.

Because of this the married father-of-four said he stopped attending the meetings and, asked by Mr Stubbs, he denied having ever participated in a, “physical homosexual relationship”.

But he added that he never spoke of this to his now late wife, Edna.
Mr Gibson will return to the witness stand to continue giving his evidence today (Friday July 29).

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Former County Durham Archdeacon to stand trial accused of abuse at Medomsley Detention Centre

11:35, 25 Jul 2016    

Updated 11:35, 25 Jul 2016    

By Laura Hill

George Granville Gibson denies eight charges of indecent assault and is due to stand trial at Durham Crown Court

Former Darlington and Aycliffe church minister George Granville Gibson, 79 leaves Newton Aycliffe Magistrates Court charged with a number of historical sexual offences 

A former County Durham archdeacon will appear in court today as part of one of the UK’s biggest investigations into historic sex abuse.

George Granville Gibson, a former Archdeacon of Auckland, has denied eight counts of sexual assaults against two men dating back to the 1970s and 1980s.

Gibson will stand trial at Durham Crown Court accused of eight charges of indecent assault.

The retired cleric was charged in 2014 as part of Operation Seabrook, one of the UK’s largest investigations into historic sex abuse.

He has denied the charges against him.

Gibson held a number of posts with the Church of England before serving as Archdeacon of Auckland.

A number of the charges relate to historical abuse which occurred during Gibson’s role in the Clergy in the Diocese of Durham. The alleged offences took place in the 1970s and 1980s. One charge relates to an alleged indecent assault during a visit to an inmate at Medomsley Detention Centre.

The investigation into Medomsley Detention Centre is ongoing and more than 300 survivors of abuse at Medomlsey Detention Centre have come forward.

The trial is expected to last a number of weeks.

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Church leaders 'ignored complaints' about vicar who abused men and boys, court hear.

• 18:05, 25 Jul 2016
• Updated 18:07, 25 Jul 2016
• By Laura Hill

Former Archdeacon of Durham, George Granville Gibson, denies eight charges of indecent assault which allegedly took place in the 1970s and 80s 

 Former Darlington and Aycliffe church minister George Granville Gibson, 79 leaves Newton Aycliffe Magistrates Court charged with a number of historical sexual offences

Senior church leaders ignored complaints that a former clergy man abused his position and sexually assaulted men and boys as young as 12 over a six-year period, a court heard.

George Granville Gibson, 80, denies eight counts of indecent assault and one count of buggery which prosecutors allege took place when he was a vicar at St Clares Church in Newton Aycliffe.

The retired former Archdeacon of Durham is said to have sexually abused three people between 1977 and 1984.

On the first day of a trial at Durham Crown Court on Monday, it was heard concerns were raised in the 1980s by one of them, who was then accused of “causing trouble”.

Outlining the case against Gibson, prosecutor Paul Cleasby said: “This is a case of sexual abuse where the defendant was in a position of power and committed offences against someone in a much more vulnerable position, made worse, say the prosecution, as the defendant was able to be cloaked in a veneer of respectability.

“The prosecution say the defendant deliberately targeted these people because of their vulnerability which meant they were unlikely to be believed.

“It was systematic, deliberate abuse.”

Gibson’s first alleged victim was a teenager who, giving evidence on Monday, told the court the accused appeared friendly and caring at first.

But within a few weeks Gibson’s tickling, play fighting and wrestling progressed to indecent assault, it was said.

“I felt sick, I thought it wasn’t happening I thought it was a mistake,” the alleged victim told jurors.

The complainant also told the court he was called a “liar” when raising concerns, before being sent to Medomsley Detention Centre.

While at the young offenders’ detention centre, prosecutors say Gibson visited and indecently assaulted the youth again.

The alleged victim said: “I was crying, Medomsley is a regime. The kicking, the punching - they stamp out everything, your identity.

“I had black eyes, I was crying ‘can you get me out? Can you get me out of here?’ I asked him. I would have done anything to get out.”

The jury of five women and seven men heard how even his parents did not believe him.
“My mam slapped me across the face and told me never to darken her door step again,”
 the alleged victim said. “I never did, she went to her grave not believing. She never met her grandkids, she called me a liar, my own mother.”

After Gibson’s arrest in 2014, he denied knowing the alleged victim until police found diary entries detailing his visit to the detention centre, the court heard.

Gibson’s second alleged victim was a choirboy, the prosecution said, who was aged between 12 and 16 when he was allegedly subjected to indecent assaults.

“As a young boy of 12 he didn’t know what to do and he just let the defendant do what he did,” Mr Cleasby told jurors.

It was more than 20 years later before the complainant told anyone about the abuse he had suffered, it was said.

“He didn’t think anyone would believe him,” Mr Cleasby added.

The court heard that Gibson’s third alleged victim raised concerns about his “sexualised” behaviour to the then Bishop of Durham, but that his concerns were ignored.

Gibson had confided in the alleged victim that he had developed homosexual thoughts in his 30s and was worried it would all come out and his wife would find out, Mr Cleasby alleged.

He then told the complainant that he had been to a meeting and “had the spirit of homosexuality cast out of him and it would be alright”, the prosecution said.

Mr Cleasby said that the church made it clear to the alleged victim that he was “causing trouble” after he reported his worries.

He said: “He [Gibson] was in a high position in the church to gain access to and abuse vulnerable people.”

Gibson, of Worsley Park, Darlington, denies all charges.

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