A ‘predatory’ former vicar who raped a six-year-old boy in his church in the late 1990s has been jailed for life.
Ifor Whittaker, 80, admitted rape and gross indecency with the child in the vestry of St John The Baptist Church in Sedlescombe, East Sussex, where he served as a priest under the name Colin Pritchard.
Hove Crown Court heard that Whittaker had baptised the boy who he went on to abuse in the incident in the 1990s.
The victim told police he had been terrified during the attack and he tried to bury the memories of what happened, but ‘it had come back to him in pieces over the years’, the court heard.
The former Church of England priest is already serving a 16-year sentence for abusing a boy between 1987 and 1991 after a trial in 2018. He was also jailed for five years in 2008 for the abuse of two children between 1979 and 1983.
He has now been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of eight years before being eligible to be considered for parole.
Sentencing him to a discretionary life sentence on Tuesday, Judge Gary Lucie said: ‘You are a predatory paedophile and have been for many years.
‘I doubt that you will ever cease to be a serious danger to young boys but that risk cannot be reliably estimated at this time.’
Former vicar Ifor Whittaker has been jailed for life for raping a six-year-old boy in his church in the late 1990s
Whittaker, 80, served at St John The Baptist Church (pictured) in Sedlescombe, East Sussex at the time of the offence
Judge Lucie told Whittaker: ‘In my judgment, the combination of offences is so serious that only custody can be justified, and for the reasons that I have already given the appropriate sentence in this case, on count 1, is a sentence of life imprisonment.’
He continued: ‘You have been responsible for committing serious sexual offences against four young boys over a long period whilst abusing your position as a trusted member of the community as a vicar.
‘This offending is of the most serious kind.’
One of the survivors of Whittaker’s abuse, Phil Johnson, present at the sentencing said the judge’s move felt like ‘moral justice’ to hand down a life sentence, as the impact on victims is lifelong.
‘I think this is a really powerful message, because in nearly 30 years of being involved in cases like this, I’ve never heard of a life sentence being handed down in this way before,’ he said.
The 59-year-old who runs support groups for adult survivors of child sexual abuse said it sends a powerful signal to other victims that there is hope and to abusers that this could happen to them too.
But Mr Johnson, who has waived his right to lifetime anonymity, said he first reported Whittaker to authorities several years before the abuse he was sentenced for on Tuesday took place.
‘Had the police and the church taken these allegations more seriously, this offence wouldn’t have happened. Whittaker wasn’t even suspended from his job whilst he was on police bail. That’s just utterly appalling.
Anglican vicar Whittaker went by the name of Father Colin Pritchard when he committed the offences at the St John The Baptist Church (pictured) in Sedlescombe
‘Thankfully, things have changed and improved since then, but it’s been a long and hard battle.’
In a message to other survivors of abuse, he added: ‘I would encourage other victims and survivors to come forward and speak about their abuse, because it’s only by doing that that we can prevent these things happening in the future.
‘I would encourage people to get support. Talk about it. The more you talk about it, the easier it gets.’
Sussex Police said the initial investigation into Whittaker did not result in a conviction and the force recognises the impact this had on the victim of that investigation.
‘We have made significant improvements to how sex offences are understood and investigated in the intervening years and remain fully committed to bringing offenders to justice,’ a spokesman said.
Speaking outside of court, Sussex Police investigating officer Nicky Beard urged other victims of sexual offending to report it to the police, adding: ‘We will listen to you.’
Reacting to the sentencing, she said: ‘The victim has lived with the impact of this abuse for all his life, most of his life, and he’s shown so much courage to come forward and report him, to help us to get justice for him.
‘I hope this outcome can finally give him closure, and Whittaker spends most of it, if not the rest of his life, behind bars.’
A spokeswoman for the Diocese of Chichester apologised ‘unreservedly’ for the ‘appalling abuse’ the victim suffered, after the church’s dealings with Whittaker were covered in reports including the Case Study for the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA).
‘That history makes clear that there were a number of serious safeguarding errors made prior to his 2008 conviction, for which this diocese has offered unreserved apologies and from which we continue to draw lessons for our current safeguarding practice,’ the spokeswoman said.
‘This case should remind us of the vital importance of prioritising the safety of children above any other consideration, listening to survivors of abuse, and ensuring that every concern is reported to the statutory authorities without delay.’