In 2022, Phylippe Baker, a Battesea Paedophile, who sexually groomed and abused a child in Dorset, maintained his innocence even as he was sent to prison today.
Phylippe Baker, 56, of Battesea in London, appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court to face the music after a disgusting campaign of sexual abuse against a young girl, which he still won’t admit to.
In August 2020, Baker met a girl he’d soon find out was under the age of 13 via the dating site Plenty of Fish. Prosecutor Christopher Wing told the court how Phylippe Baker connected with the girl, whose identity is protected by law, shortly after her 12th birthday.
The paedophile, who had already been convicted of sexual offences against children in 2008, proceeded to groom the girl and arrange meet-ups. All the while, their text message conversations turned sexual, and Phylippe Baker, the court heard, invited her repeatedly to engage in penetrative sex with him.
Phylippe Baker arranged to meet up with the girl, who he knew was certainly underage, though it remained unclear if he knew the true extent of her youth. Baker would frequently travel from his home in Battersea to Sturminster Newton to meet with the girl for up to an hour, with DNA evidence proving that she was in his car.
On at least one occasion, Phylippe Baker and the girl engaged in sexual touching. By February 2021, text message evidence showed that the paedophile was told about the girl’s age, specifically that she was under 13.
Phylippe Baker was arrested in April 2021 and falsely claimed that he was “helping” the girl because she was being beaten by her father. Both of these claims were plainly refuted during Baker’s trial earlier this year.
Phylippe Baker bribed the girl with money, drinks, food, and a phone. After he was arrested, he admitted to police that she had touched him sexually, but repeatedly claimed that she had initiated all forms of sexual contact between them and that he’d told her to stop.
This, Judge William Howard Mousley said, was also firmly established to have been false. The girl, by the time of Baker’s arrest, was severely psychologically damaged and referred to Phylippe Baker as a “friend” for months after his arrest and tried to communicate with him further.
Her father, reading a victim’s personal statement on her behalf, said: “My daughter changed from being an open and honest child who spoke about everything to one shut down and not speaking to us.
“At the time, she was dishonest and sneaky. I put it down to her becoming older and starting secondary school. Our normally well-behaved daughter stopped caring about anything and skipped school.
“Our lives fell apart, and it was like a bomb going off. Her phone messages shocked and upset me. This was my daughter. I was disgusted that an adult could talk to her in a sexual way.
“I then understood her behaviour. She wasn’t sneaky or dishonest, but behaved because of the man abusing her. Despite us telling her it’s not her fault, she doesn’t believe us.
“She was under the age of 13, and she thought she had asked for it. I hope one day she learns it wasn’t and she learns to get past it and move on with her life. I hope she learns to be happy and learn to trust again.”
Defending Baker, Mrs Graham tried unsuccessfully to persuade Judge Mousley that there was no significant psychological damage to the girl and that her pursuing him was proof of his. The judge was unmoved.
Nor was Judge Mousley persuaded by the claim by Mrs Graham that Phylippe Baker’s previous caring for his mother, or his diagnosis of autism, should weigh in on his sentence.
At one stage, Phylippe Baker himself butted in and said: “I do understand exactly what’s gone on and totally accept my wrongdoing, and I’ll abide by anything you suggest, and for this I apologise.
“I apologise to keep butting in and for all of this. But my main concern is that I hope this girl, wherever she ends up, is somewhere safe. This was my only aim in this.
“I’m no threat to anyone. I accept that in 2008, I messed up trying to help someone. I put a stop to it. I tried to abide by the rules, and I seem to be the one who’s in trouble for being honest. It makes me wonder if it is worth being honest. I was just trying to help her.”
Once again, the judge was unmoved and summed up that he did, in fact, consider Phylippe Baker a dangerous man, given his repeated denial of what he had done.
Summing up, Judge Mousley said: “You claimed she wasn’t a child and blamed her for the sexualised communications. You denied grooming her. Such was the influence that this seriously damaged child refused to support the investigation and maintained contact with you for several months after.
“You are a fantasist, you still maintain that all you were trying to do was help this girl. That’s a worrying and continued denial of your behaviour.”
Phylippe Baker was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment, with three additional years on licence to reflect his serious risk to the public. Throughout the judge’s summary, Phylippe Baker shook his head and scoffed.
Detective Constable Mandy Lawrence, of the Child Abuse Investigation Team (CAIT), said: “The victim in this case did not provide an account of what happened. However, through investigative work, we were able to identify Phylippe Baker and bring him before the courts.
“Phylippe Baker knowingly communicated with his victim in a sexual manner, despite her young age. Dorset Police takes sexual offending against children extremely seriously and we will do all we can to identify those responsible.”
If you or anyone you know has been affected by the people highlighted on this website, then please report those individuals to the Police on 101 (999 if an emergency) or visit their online resources for further details of the options for reporting a crime. You can also make a report to Crimestoppers should you wish to be completely anonymous. There is help available on our support links page.