A FORMER Redditch police officer has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for historic sexual offences.
Alan Peter Saffery was found guilty at Worcester Crown Court last Friday (February 27) of six counts of indecent assault, two counts of sexual intercourse with a girl under 13 and two counts of making indecent photographs of children.
Saffery, from Spinney Grove in Hereford, was found not guilty of two counts of rape against a different person.
The 61-year-old, who worked as a PC in the borough at the start of his policing career, carried out the offences between 1977 and 1981 but they were reported to officers by the victim during another investigation.
The charges relating to making indecent images of children were from June 2013 when Saffery had downloaded images which were only discovered during the investigation for the other offences.
Det Insp Richard Rees said: “This conviction and sentence sends out a strong message that nobody is above the law.
“Outwardly, Saffery was a respected police officer and an upstanding member of the community, however behind closed doors he was a dangerous sexual predator who took advantage of a young girl. Now his past has caught up with him.
“I would like to pay tribute to the bravery of the victim in coming forward to report these crimes after such a long time and encourage anyone else who has been through a similar ordeal to report it and allow us to ensure other perpetrators face justice.”
Victims of sexual abuse, or anybody who is worried about someone being abused, should contact West Mercia Police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously 0800 555 111.
