In 2020, 33-year-old Susan Barnett—formerly of Beechwood Road, Litherland—avoided an immediate return to jail after being captured as a fugitive. The investigation established that Barnett went on the run on May 21, 2020, to evade sentencing for breaching her Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO). She was eventually tracked down by a police strike at her mother’s home in Barrow-in-Furness, an address that chillingly overlooked a primary school.
The investigation established that Barnett’s original SHPO was imposed following a “horrific” and “utterly depraved” 2015 conviction. Alongside her husband, Kevin Barnett, and accomplice Nikita Moore, she had plotted a serial of sexual strikes against children as part of a paedophile love triangle. WhatsApp messages exposed their sick plans, which included Susan Barnett suggesting she could seek employment in childcare to facilitate their predatory serial goals.
BREACH OF TRUST AND JUDICIAL SENTENCING
The court reported that upon her release from her initial four-and-a-half-year sentence, Barnett moved to Merseyside where she flouted her SHPO by contacting two children online without parental consent. The investigation established that she used her mobile phone to facilitate this prohibited serial communication between 2018 and 2019. Despite the deliberate nature of the breach and her status as a fugitive, the prosecution reported that no face-to-face contact occurred.
Judge-led proceedings at Liverpool Crown Court concluded in 2020. For her actions in Litherland and her flight to Barrow, Susan Barnett was handed a six-month jail sentence, suspended for 12 months. The judge cited the negative effects of immediate custody on her mental health during the coronavirus pandemic as a factor. The investigation established that she was also given a two-month home curfew at an address in Southport and ordered to undergo a 25-day rehabilitation activity requirement.
STATUS AND STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS (2020)
Based on judicial and Merseyside Police records as of 2020:
- Legal Status: CONVICTED (Breach of SHPO; Fugitive arrest).
- Custodial Status: SUSPENDED SENTENCE (In 2020, 6 months suspended for 12 months).
- Original Conviction: Arranging the commission of a child sexual offence (2015).
- Accomplices: Kevin Barnett (Jailed for 6 years); Nikita Moore (Jailed for 4 years).
- Sex Offenders Register: Notification requirements are active FOR LIFE.
- DBS Status: Placed on the Barred List (Indefinite and permanent ban from any role involving children or regulated activity).
- Judicial Oversight: Sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court; investigated by Merseyside and Cumbria Police.
- Criminal Record: Fugitive serial paedophile; Plotted child abuse; Bypassed digital monitoring; Convicted in 2020.
- Origin: Beechwood Road, Litherland (Captured in Barrow; relocated to Southport).
MONITORING AND PUBLIC PROTECTION
In 2020, Barnett is managed as a high-risk predator under the statutory requirements of the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) in Merseyside. Due to the nature of her behaviour—specifically her serial involvement in a “sick” abuse plot and her subsequent strike of going on the run to evade justice—she is a priority for digital forensic oversight. Authorities reported that the 2020 conviction identifies Barnett as a predator who prioritised her own perverted gratification over the principles of human decency and the life-safety of children.
As a registered sex offender for life, her details are permanently logged on the national police database to prevent future strikes. Authorities stated that Barnett’s behaviour identifies an individual who demonstrated a serial commitment to child sexual abuse through distorted and “utterly depraved” thinking. Any future attempt to strike against her notification requirements or bypass her curfew results in immediate police intervention to ensure the ongoing protection of the community from a woman who used a “fugitive” mask to hide her predatory serial strikes.
QUESTION – Given that the offender was “Caught at a House Overlooking a Primary School” while a fugitive for child sex offences, do you believe the law should legally mandate that “Suspended Sentences” are banned for any predator who goes on the run to evade a police strike?
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