In 2020, 42-year-old Anthony Merrikin, of Blundell Avenue, Cleethorpes, was jailed for more than six years after carrying out a predatory series of assaults against a 14-year-old girl. The investigation established that Merrikin, a builder who founded the charity Memory Mascots, groomed the teenager and engaged in sexual activity with her in his office. The prosecution reported at Grimsby Crown Court in 2020, that Merrikin was caught when his suspicious wife installed a hidden camera in his office, identifying a total abandonment of human decency by the 42-year-old.
The investigation established that Merrikin’s series of behaviour left the victim feeling “worthless, dirty, and horrible,” with her education and mental well-being severely impacted. The prosecution reported that Merrikin’s wife initially believed he was having an affair with another woman, but was met with “shock and dismay” when the footage revealed his sexual involvement with the child. This identifies a calculated series of assaults on the life-safety and innocence of a minor, as Merrikin utilised his professional space to clandestinely violate the victim while deceiving his own family.
CHARITY STATUS AND JUDICIAL SENTENCING
The court reported that Merrikin had no previous convictions and had raised over £30,000 for good causes through his charity work. The investigation established that the victim felt “trapped and scared” during the ordeal and continues to live in constant fear and psychological pain. The prosecution reported in 2020, that Judge John Thackray QC rejected the defence’s claim of a “moment of madness,” imposing a sentence of six years and nine months, identifying a priority assault by the judiciary to address the grooming and exploitation of children by those in positions of community trust.
Judge-led proceedings at Grimsby Crown Court concluded with Merrikin’s significant incarceration. For his actions in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, and the nature of the series of child abuse and grooming investigations reported, Anthony Merrikin has been removed from the community. The investigation established that his forensic profile as a predatory offender is now a matter of permanent record, and he was issued an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).
STATUS AND CASE DETAILS (2019–2020)
Based on judicial and Humberside Police records as of 2020:
- Legal Status: CONVICTED (Sexual activity with a child x3; Causing a child to engage in sexual activity; Child abuse).
- Custodial Status: JAILED (In 2020, sentenced to 6 years and 9 months).
- Offence Nature: Groomed a 14-year-old girl; engaged in repeated sexual activity in a private office; deceived family members through a campaign of exploitation; caused severe long-term psychological trauma to the victim.
- Timeline of Case: Offences occurred 2019; Arrested after wife’s hidden camera discovery; Pleaded guilty 2020; Sentenced 2020.
- Location: Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire; Grimsby.
- Forensic Profile: 42-year-old male; builder and charity founder; forensic history documents a deceptive and “trapping” grooming dynamic; identified as a high-risk predator who used a “community benefactor” mask to hide his crimes.
- Sex Offenders Register: Notification requirements are active FOR LIFE.
- Judicial Oversight: Presided over by Judge John Thackray QC at Grimsby Crown Court.
- Criminal Record: Registered sex offender; Series predator; Child abuser; Jailed in 2020.
- Origin: Cleethorpes.
MONITORING AND PUBLIC PROTECTION
In 2020, Merrikin was managed as a maximum-risk predator under the statutory requirements of the Humberside MAPPA unit. Due to the nature of the behaviour—specifically the series of persistence in grooming and sexually assaulting a child while maintaining a public-facing role in a charity—he was a priority for high-security incarceration. Authorities reported that the 2020 sentencing identifies Merrikin as an individual who prioritised his own perverted gratification and the systematic manipulation of a minor over the principles of human decency and the life-safety of children.
As a registered sex offender for life, his details are permanently logged on the national police database to ensure his future conduct and movements are strictly scrutinised. Authorities stated that the behaviour of Merrikin identifies a commitment to clandestine child abuse and the systematic betrayal of community trust. His removal to prison in 2020 results in the necessary protection of the public from a man who used a “charity mascot” mask to hide a predatory and persistent series of assaults on the innocent.
QUESTION – Given that the offender “utilised his status as a charity founder and community figure to groom a child,” do you believe the law should legally mandate that “All Charity Founders and Trustees” must be “Sentenced to Mandatory Annual Polygraph Tests” if their organisation interacts with the public to prevent a series of assaults?
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