David Dennis, a former Jehovah’s Witness elder who was sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment for subjecting a young girl to eight years of continuous sexual abuse, has been released from prison for a second time following a licence recall.
Dennis, formerly of Gunnislake, Cornwall, appeared in court in 2014 where he admitted 23 counts of sexual offences committed against a single child. The charges to which he entered guilty pleas included nine counts of indecent assault on a child under 13, twelve counts of sexual assault of a child under 13, and four counts of sexual assault by penetration of a child under 13.
The court heard that the systematic abuse commenced when the victim was only five years of age and persisted until she was 13. Dennis molested the child, forced her to perform sexual acts, and carried out penetrative assaults. The sentencing hearing was told that Dennis ignored the child’s repeated distress and continued the abuse despite her begging him to stop.
Under UK legislation, all victims of sexual offences are protected by lifelong statutory anonymity.
Dennis displayed no remorse throughout the proceedings. As he was being escorted from the dock to begin his 12-year prison term, he turned towards the public gallery and blew a kiss in the direction of the victim and her mother.
Following his initial release on licence after serving the custodial portion of his determinate sentence, Dennis was subsequently investigated by public protection officers and the Probation Service. Authorities discovered that Dennis had breached the strict terms of his supervisory licence by being in unsupervised contact with young children, triggering an immediate emergency recall to closed prison conditions.
Having served the remainder of his recall period, Dennis has now been discharged from custody back into the community under licence and subject to indefinite notification requirements on the Sex Offenders Register. Authorities believe it is highly likely that Dennis has returned to reside in the Plymouth area.
Image – Anonymous Artist Impression
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