A Cross Side Paedophile bus driver, Mark Gadsby, has been sentenced to six years in prison for the sexual abuse of a teenage kid. Mark Gadsby, who operated in the South Derbyshire and East Staffordshire regions, perpetrated egregious offences in his twenties, yet his abhorrent crimes remained unpunished for an extended period.
The 41-year-old, Mark Gadsby, had an ordinary life and was highlighted in a national publication for his weight loss prior to the victim, who was 13 when the abuse commenced, coming forward to recount his experience. He was targeted by Gadsby after being transported to school by him on the bus.
The situation commenced with text messages requesting the youngster to meet, followed by Mark Gadsby providing transportation in his Ford Fiesta, ultimately leading to the physical abuse of the victim in a rural lane in Staffordshire.
The abuse subsequently escalated to occurring in public restrooms and at Gadsby’s mother’s residence while her absence for work, as reported by Derbyshire Live.
As well as the physical acts, Mark Gadsby also groomed the victim and threatened to tell others about the abuse, which “ruined his teenage years”.
The victim, who is granted automatic anonymity under the Sexual Offences Act, released a statement, saying: “I do get upset about it still and I just think why did he need to do that?
“It’s just the way of how controlling and overpowering and how frightened he made me feel but why would someone want to do that to someone who’s 13-14 years old? He was just a big fat sweaty person, no one else would look at him, at 21 years old he should’ve been going out Friday and Saturday nights, not targeting a 13-year-old.”
Mark Gadsby, of Cross Side, Ashbourne, was sentenced at Derby Crown Court on April 3. Mark Gadsby pleaded guilty to one charge of buggery and six of gross indecency with a child under 16.
Separately he also admitted to two indecent images offences after a number of indecent images of children were found on his phone. As well as his six-year jail term, Mark Gadsby was also given a sexual harm prevention order will have to sign the Sex Offender’s register for the rest of his life.
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.