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Posted: Tue, 25 Feb 2020 02:52:37 GMT

A religious mother had a secret past as a “sexual predator” and used fake Facebook accounts to troll one of her victims, a court heard.

Selina Sharafi, 37, abused two youngsters when she was a child during a game of “princes and princesses”.

Jurors found the mature student guilty of five offences of indecent assault, and she was jailed for 20 months.

Newcastle Crown Court heard that after the victims had plucked up the courage to report what had happened to them, Sharafi had tracked them down on Facebook and used 11 fake profiles to send cruel messages.

One of the victims of the mum from Hebburn, Tyne and Wear in northern England, said Sharafi “was a sexual predator” and her ordeal had an “unbearable” effect on the rest of her life.

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ONLINE ABUSE

The victim told the court the torment from Sharafi continued in the recent past and added: “She would frequently message me from fake Facebook accounts.

“She would pretend to be people I know, saying she had heard about the accusations, saying I was weird and sick and no one liked me or believed me.”

The other victim said in her statement: “She took away my worth, privacy, time, safety, intimacy, confidence, my own voice – until today.

“She has no idea how hard I have worked to rebuild parts of me that are still weak.

“What she did doesn’t expire, it doesn’t just go away after a set number of years.

“It stays with me, it is part of my permanent identity. It has forever changed the way I carry myself and the way I live the rest of my life.”

The court heard the offences started before Sharafi had reached the age of criminal responsibility, which was then 14 but has since been lowered to age 10.

Prosecutor Paul Cleasby said Sharafi posed a “continued risk” and added: “The defendant continues to deny her offending. The risk, say the prosecution, is still evident.”

Judge Robert Adams jailed Sharafi for 20 months and said she must sign the sex offenders’ register for 10 years.

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The judge made a restraining order to keep Sharafi away from her victims for life.

Judge Adams said the case was “very unusual” and told Sharafi: “It is suggested you gained pleasure from what took place and preyed on their vulnerability. To an extent that must be right.”

The judge added: “I have no doubt that as an adult you have not reoffended in any way like this and have led a fairly constructive and sensible life since the age of 18.”

Deborah Smithies, defending, urged the judge to suspend the prison sentence and said Sharafi had a troubled early life.

“Is it necessary and proportionate to punish Selina Sharafi now with custody, for what she started doing as a child and continued doing as a teenager, to remove her from her family now and send her to immediate custody?” Ms Smithies said.

“While she accepts the verdicts returned against her by the jury, she maintains her denial of this offending.”

This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission

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