A SICK ex-police officer repeatedly raped a teenage girl and called her his “slave” after grooming her online, a court heard.
Mark Lindow targeted his victim under the name ‘British bobby’ on messaging app Kik before subjecting her to a series of horrific sex attacks.
On one occasion, the 61-year-old invited a friend to join them at a Travelodge hotel where he then filmed the man also raping the teen, Maidstone Crown Court was told.
Lindow, who was in the Kent force for 14 years and dealt with border control at the Channel Tunnel, maintained all sexual activity with the youngster, whom he said he believed to be 18, was consensual.
But he was today convicted and now faces a lengthy sentence behind bars.
Horrific details of her ordeal came to light after a member of the public alerted police to a girl walking into the River Medway in Chatham, Kent, in August last year.
She was found in a distressed state, and subsequently revealed that 6ft 2in, 17st Lindow had repeatedly abused her and even filmed himself raping her during their first in-person meeting.
The court heard they had initially met on social media platform Kik on which Lindow used the names ‘Bobby’ and ‘Britishbobby50’.
The “vulnerable and naïve” girl told police he not only forced her to have sex with him on several occasions but was violent if she refused.
He also referred to her as his “slave” and said he wanted her to tell people he “owned” her.
Lindow, of Folkestone, Kent, was found guilty of five offences of rape, one of making an indecent photo of a child, and one of distributing an indecent photo, all committed between January and August 2020.
He had admitted two other offences of making indecent photos of a child ahead of his trial.
His co-defendant Kurt Baker, whom he also met online, was convicted of three charges of rape committed on August 7 last year.
The 39-year-old, of Gravesend, Kent, was arrested as a result of images of his distinctive tattoos, taken from the footage on Lindow’s phone.
Judge Julian Smith adjourned sentencing until a later date but warned Lindow on what was his 61st birthday that he faced “a very substantial jail term.
He told both men: “This is grave offending of the worst kind.
“It is of profound impact upon your victim and there is no remorse, no sense of what you have done.
“The concern I have is not just to impose an appropriate punishment for what you have done to a young and obviously highly vulnerable individual, but to assess the risk you pose in the future.”
TWISTED EX-COP
Baker was heard threatening Lindow as they were both remanded in custody.
Prosecutor Daniel Stevenson told the court at the start of their trial that the offences were committed against a background of “child sexual exploitation and blackmail”.
He said although those who were blackmailing the girl had not been identified, Lindow knew what was happening and treated the teenager as his sexual object.
Lindow, who was not a serving police officer at the time having left the force in 2015, hit her and repeatedly made her do things “she did not want to do”, Mr Stevenson said.
She told authorities she repeatedly said ‘no’ to Lindow’s demands, but “unfortunately, she did not have the ability to extract herself from the situation she found herself in”.
“She felt sad because she felt she didn’t have a choice,” he added.
“She was worried that he might show her pictures, or he would hit her.”
The girl also told police that her blackmail ordeal, which included threats of rape and even death against her family, started after she had shared nude photos of herself online.
She felt sad because she felt she didn’t have a choice.
Those responsible even claimed to have installed an app called Anydesk on her phone so they could hack into and control the device remotely.
This led to them obtaining photos of other family members and also contacting a relative to say they had naked photos of the victim.
One of the blackmailers also contacted Lindow online about the teenager, the court heard.
Mr Stevenson said images and videos found on the complainant’s phone supported her claims of being “threatened and humiliated” by the unknown individuals.
A jury was told her “unquestionable vulnerability and naivety” was clear to see.
Lindow was arrested at work in January this year. His phone was analysed and police found semi-naked photos of the victim and three explicit videos stored in a passcode-protected app called Keepsafe.
His internet history also revealed searches for “schoolgirl f***ed by teacher”, “tiny t*ts video”, and “amateur girl had sex in the hotel”.
And his Facebook messaging history showed he had bragged about sexually assaulting the girl at the hotel to a friend.
‘SICKENING ABUSE’
Lindow told police what happened at the hotel was “usual submissive-dominant role play”, with Lindow “controlling the situation”.
Both men will be sentenced in the two-week period commencing on November 29.
A spokesperson for children’s charity NSPCC said: “Lindow and Baker’s victim was put through horrors no person should be subjected to, let alone a young teenager.
“It is of the utmost importance that she now receives the support she needs to move on from their sickening abuse.
“As this case shows, the internet often remains an unsafe space for children, providing the tools for offenders like Lindow to groom and abuse vulnerable young people.
“The NSPCC will continue to lobby the Government to ensure the proposed Online Safety Bill is not only robust and effective, but has the safety of children at its heart.
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