Dinato Rizzi, a 66-year-old Netherhall Paedophile described as ‘perverted,’ abducted and sexually assaulted a 12-year-old girl he encountered online. Dinato Rizzi was aware that the girl was under 16 and had devised a strategy to conceal his actions in the event of being apprehended, as revealed by a Leicestershire Police inquiry.
Dinato Rizzi, residing at New Romney Crescent, Leicester, Leicestershire, LE5. The court was informed that he had communicated with the youngster online and subsequently asserted ignorance of her age, a statement deemed “completely absurd” by a detective involved with the case.
The victim of Dinato Rizzi courageously recounted her experience to specialised officials following her mother’s discovery of her communication with him. The mother informed the police in January that her daughter had revealed she met a man online and visited his residence on New Romney Crescent.
She provided screenshots of messages the man and her daughter had exchanged. The girl then told police that she met with Dinato Rizzi on a number of occasions over the previous weeks and sexual activity had taken place between them at his address.
Detectives from the force’s child sexual exploitation team investigated and subsequently arrested Dinato Rizzi and later charged him with a number of crimes against the child. He was found guilty of 13 offences following a trial at Nottingham Crown Court and was sentenced on on Friday, October 21.
Detective Constable Sue Cockerill, who investigated the case, said officers uncovered messages exchanged between the two where Dinato Rizzi, who is known locally as Dean or Deano, acknowledged the girl was under 16 and how he would cover his tracks if he got caught.
Detectives are still investigating Dinato Rizzi and suspect he could have other victims. Det con Cockerill added that investigators are examining devices recovered from his home and suspect he may have been in contact with other girls.
She said: “Dinato Rizzi claimed that he didn’t know that the girl was under 18, a claim which is completely absurd. Anyone who takes one look at this young girl can see she is that – a young girl who doesn’t even look like she could be 16 years old let alone 18.
“She told him her real age and this man simply chose to ignore it, sexually exploiting her and taking advantage of her vulnerabilities for his own perverted gratification. This young girl and her family have been through a terrible ordeal.
“She has been exceptionally brave in recalling her interactions with Dinato Rizzi. I hope now, finally, she and her family can start to rebuild their lives and move past what has happened.
“I would like to thank Claire Fraser KC and Sarah Holland from the Crown Prosecution Service for their significant hard work and commitment in bringing this case before the court and securing a conviction against Dinato Rizzi. We are continuing our investigation into Rizzi which includes the examination of devices recovered from his home.
“We suspect that he may have been in contact with other girls and could well have committed sexual offences against others. I would therefore urge anyone who may have been a victim to please contact us. We have officers who are trained to speak sensitively to children who may have been victims of similar offences.”
Dinato Rizzi was sentenced to serve 20 years in prison and will be on the Sex Offenders Register for life. He was
A jury found Dinato Rizzi guilty of the following offences between December 2021 and 27 January 2022
- Two counts under the Child Abduction Act namely taking a child so as to keep her
- from a person having lawful control
- One count of taking indecent photographs of a child
- One count of taking an indecent image of a child
- One count of assault of a child under 13 by penetration
- Four counts of rape of a child under 13
- Two counts of One count of assault of a child under 13 by penetration
- Two counts of rape of a child under 13
The young victim’s mother has shared the impact of the offences on her daughter in a statement, which she said will affect her for the rest of her life. The mum said: “She should be at a point in her life where she is looking forward to her future but she feels she doesn’t have one.
“She can’t see her friends as much and her schoolwork has suffered massively. Her social development has suffered in many ways as well and she continues to sleep in my room at night,” she said.
Detective Inspector Gary Bee, who leads the force’s exploitation team, said: “This case highlights the dangers that can lurk online and the sophisticated methods that sexual perpetrators use to exploit young and vulnerable children. It’s a timely reminder to all parents to ensure that they have safeguards in place at home to understand their children’s use of the internet and social media.
“Dinato Rizzi’s level of offending against such a young child is particularly concerning and I would urge anybody with any concerns around historic or ongoing abuse by him to contact Leicestershire Police, your concerns will be dealt with confidentially and by specially trained officers.”
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.