A man has been jailed for seven years and two months after he pleaded guilty to non-recent sex offences against a teenage girl.

Tom Heckley, 25, of Muirfield Way in Woodhall Spa was convicted of 15 offences when he appeared at Lincoln Crown Court earlier today (22 January).

These include seven counts of sexual activity with a child involving penetration, one count of engaging in sexual communication with a child and one count of attempting to cause a child to watch a sexual act.

Heckley committed the crimes in 2021 in the Lincolnshire area when he was 20 years old. The offences came to light following a report to the police in October 2023.

The 25-year-old was also convicted of six counts of possessing indecent images of children. The images and chat logs were discovered on Heckley’s phone after they were seized and examined and were of other teenage girls under 16 at the time.

Detective Constable Kye Sykes, who led the investigation, said: “We’d like to pay tribute to the bravery of the victim in this case. Having the courage to report a traumatic event and placing her trust in us meant that we were able to identify other victims and safeguard them to the best of our ability.

“Despite the case being reported three years after it took place, we hope that this case reiterates that it is never too late to report if you are a survivor of sexual abuse. We will do everything we can to thoroughly investigate historic offences and hold offenders accountable for their actions.

“We’d also like to give thanks to the Independent Sexual Violence Adviser (ISVA) Service at Spring Lodge for their support that they provide to survivors of sexual violence.”

Heckley has also been given an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) and a restraining order. Heckley has also been placed on the Sex Offenders Register.