Martin Mills, aged 38, an inmate serving an indeterminate sentence for child rape, has been sentenced to three years’ imprisonment at Lincoln Crown Court after acquiring an illicit mobile phone inside an open prison to groom a 13-year-old girl.
Mills was previously convicted of serious sexual offending, including the rape of a child aged under 13, for which he received a Sentence of Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP). While serving this indeterminate custodial term at HMP North Sea Camp, an open prison facility near Boston, Lincolnshire, Mills obtained an unauthorised mobile handset.
Between August and September 2024, Mills utilised the device to download a teen chat platform and establish contact with a 13-year-old child. Despite full awareness of the girl’s age and being subject to a 2011 Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO), Mills initiated explicit sexual communications, stated that he desired sexual contact with her, and pressured her to send photographs of herself in her underwear.
Under UK legislation, all victims of sexual offences are protected by lifelong statutory anonymity.
A victim impact statement provided by the child’s mother detailed profound psychological harm, confirming that the grooming shattered the child’s confidence, led to episodes of self-harm, and necessitated specialist therapeutic counselling.
The criminal activity was uncovered when another prisoner discovered the hidden handset and alerted authorities. A digital forensic examination of the device recovered the transcripts of the sexual grooming along with 47 Category C indecent images of children. During subsequent police interviews, Mills admitted having an active sexual interest in young girls aged 13 and above.
Appearing via video link from HMP Whatton on 2 October, Mills entered guilty pleas to four criminal charges:
- Sexual communication with a child
- Making indecent photographs of children
- Possessing an unauthorised mobile phone inside a prison establishment
- Breaching a Sexual Offences Prevention Order
Sentencing him, Judge Simon Hirst highlighted expert risk assessments classifying Mills as a continued danger to young teenage girls. The judge imposed a three-year custodial term to run concurrently with his existing IPP tariff, meaning the sentence will not automatically prolong his incarceration but will be factored into future risk assessments by the Parole Board.
The court also made Mills subject to a new Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) and imposed an indefinite restraining order barring him from initiating any direct or indirect contact with the victim and her family.
Image – Anonymous Artist Impression
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