A man has been jailed for 24 years for raping an “extremely vulnerable” 12-year-old boy after the pair met on a dating app.
Stephen Ireland, 41, who co-founded Pride in Surrey in 2018, raped the child at the flat he shared with his then-partner and co-defendant David Sutton, 27, in Addlestone on 19 April 2024 after messaging on Grindr.
Ireland was also sentenced to a further six years on extended licence, while Sutton was jailed for four-and-a-half years for making indecent photographs of children and possession of an extreme pornographic image.
At Guildford Crown Court on Monday, Judge Patricia Lees said Ireland “took advantage” of a vulnerable child.
The boy – referred to in court as Child A – who had been reported missing at the time, told police they had sex in the flat, smoked a bong which was later found to have contained methamphetamine, and that pornography was played on a laptop.
The court heard the boy had initially told Ireland he was aged 17 – but when he later claimed to be aged 13, Ireland replied: “OK – we just have to keep it a secret.”
“Your response was telling,” Judge Lees told Ireland, who sat in the dock dressed in a large red T-shirt and showed no emotions throughout the hearing.
“Far from finding that repugnant, you found that exciting, and sought to do it again.”
In a Telegram chat that took place after their encounter, Ireland sent Child A a message in which he described his age as “naughty and kinky”, the court heard.
On the same day, Ireland asked the boy if he would have a threesome and sent the child pictures of himself and Sutton.
Jurors heard that Ireland sent a picture of Child A to Sutton, describing him as a “14-year-old baby” who “wants to play with men’s bodies”, and the pair exchanged messages about the child.
Ireland along with Sutton, who was a volunteer for Surrey Pride, were found guilty of a string of sexual offences against children including voyeurism, arranging commission of a child sex offence, and possession of prohibited images of children, after a trial at Guildford Crown Court earlier this year.
In August 2022, Ireland and Sutton discussed arrangements to procure a 13-year-old boy for Sutton’s 25th birthday in October of that year, the court heard.
