Goodrich Paedophile Andrew Herbert admitted admission to 10 charges of indecent assault against young females in the early 1970s.
A guy who sexually assaulted two young girls in Bristol 50 years ago, during his adolescence, has been mandated to compensate them £25,000 each.
However, Andrew Herbert, now 67 and residing in Herefordshire, was not incarcerated after pleading guilty to ten counts of indecent assault, as the presiding judge stated that the law mandated imprisonment in accordance with the legal standards and sentencing guidelines in effect at that time. One of the ladies he victimised during her childhood has courageously relinquished her right to privacy and recounted her experience.
Sentencing at Bristol Crown Court today (Friday, November 4) His Honour Judge Julian Lambert said that, if Andrew Herbert had committed the offences now, he would be facing a lengthy prison sentence, but because the sentencing powers back in the early 1970s were not as strong, he could only be sent to prison for a matter of weeks.
Instead, the judge ordered Herbert be the subject of a community order lasting for two years, with a requirement to undertake rehabilitation activity for 50 days with sex offender treatment work. He was also ordered to observe a curfew to remain at home between 9pm and 6am every day for the next 18 months – enforced by an electronic tag.
Andrew Herbert was also ordered to do unpaid work in a community service order of 225 hours, and ordered to pay £25,000 to each of the victims in the case, to be paid within 12 months.
The judge told Andrew Herbert that the victims in the case had suffered ‘lifelong oppression’, which was at the forefront of his mind when sentencing him. “The repressed voices of children have now resonated through half a century of suffering and turmoil,” Judge Lambert told him.
“The cruel, criminal abuse of the young is now revealed through the mists of time. It is worth remembering that you were a child yourself at the time of the offending. I recognise your own harrowing background, but you are the perpetrator in this, not the victim. It would be best to banish any element of self-pity and possible victim blaming. You were considerably older than your victims and perfectly well able to distinguish right from wrong,” he added.
The judge explained to the court that, back in 1970, no court could impose a prison sentence on a person under 17, but only order them to be ‘detained’ in a detention centre – and the maximum detention for a 15-year-old was just three months.
“With an artificially limited sentence and a requirement to give credit for (guilty) plea there would have been a release in custody within weeks,” Judge Lambert said. “Whatever sentence I pass will seem hollow to the victims of the offences.
“I do not believe I can now send you to custody…These were however very serious offences with the most severe effects. I impose the least sentence commensurate with the seriousness of the offences,” he added.
The court had heard Andrew Herbert was also charged with two counts of rape, which he denied. He was cleared by a jury trial of one count and the jury failed to reach a verdict in the other, and the CPS said it would not pursue this charge. He had pleaded guilty to ten other counts of indecent assault, which were prosecuted under different laws in force at the time, back between 1970 and 1972.
The case came to light in 2020 when one of the victims, Liz Roberts, reported to police what he did to her as an eight-year-old girl. After the trial and sentencing, she waived her right to anonymity to speak out about the case. She urged others to come forward to report abuse they are suffering, or have suffered.
“I waited 50 years to tell my story as I didn’t think anyone would care about what happened. That clearly isn’t true and I only wish I’d reported it sooner,” she said. “There have of course been times when it has brought the trauma of what he did back, and I still have a long way to go in my recovery journey, but I have no regrets.
“People like Andrew Herbert get away with it by passing their guilt and shame on to those they are meant to be protecting and literally hiding in plain sight. There is support out there and people will help whether you want offences investigated or not.
“Justice comes in many forms. Feeling the care and support of everyone around me means that I can now hold my head high – that is the best kind of justice,” she added.
She praised the people who have supported her since the first day she reported what happened to her all those years ago. “From the moment I reported Andrew Herbert, I have been fully supported through the investigation and right through to the court process. This support hasn’t just been from the police but also from Safe Link, who allocated an Independent Sexual Violence Advisor (ISVA) to me and charities such as SARSAS (Somerset and Avon Rape and Sexual Assault Support) which provided free essential counselling support. They have held my hand every step of the way both physically and metaphorically and have done everything they can to ease the process for me.”
The court heard emotional impact statements from both the victims in the case, who described lifelong psychological impacts of the abuse they suffered at such a young age. Both victims told the court they struggled to build relationships and suffered serious mental health effects that have lasted decades.
The investigating officer in the case was PC Becky Norton, from Avon and Somerset police. “Andrew Herbert’s actions have had a lifelong impact on both his victims. He claimed to have experienced a tsunami of shame but that is absolutely nothing compared to what they have gone through, for they have spent the past five decades living with the trauma he inflicted on them.
“They both deserve immense credit for standing up to him in court and telling the judge exactly how deeply his abuse has affected them,” she added.
Det Supt Lisa Simpson, the force’s lead for Rape and Serious Sexual Assault, said: “What Liz Roberts is doing now, in waiving her anonymity, is nothing short of remarkable. Together, with our partners in the Crown Prosecution Service, we’re working hard to hold offenders to account for the vile offences they have committed and, with the help of third sector partners such as SafeLink, The Bridge and SARSAS to making sure they are ok and helping them recover from the trauma they’ve endured.”
If you or anyone you know have been affected by the people highlighted in this article, 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 at Crimestoppers should you wish to be completely anonymous. There is help available on our support links page.