Former youth coach Barry Bennell was found guilty of multiple counts of child sexual abuse on Tuesday in a case that rocked English football, triggering hundreds of revelations. Bennell, 64, a former coach at Crewe Alexandra who was also associated with Manchester City, is being tried on 48 counts of abuse between 1979 and 1990.

New revelations in 2016 about Bennell, who had previously received three prison sentences for similar offences, prompted more than 350 calls to a special emergency line set up by the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.

Football Association chairman Greg Clarke said at the time there were “moral consequences of failing to deal with some of these issues in the past” and ordered an inquiry into the handling of abuse cases.

The jury on Tuesday delivered partial verdicts and will resume deliberations on Wednesday. They found Bennell guilty on two charges of indecently assaulting one young boy between 1979 and 1982. He was convicted of three counts of indecent assault and two counts of buggery against a second complainant.

Bennell was also found guilty of four counts of indecent assault against a third complainant. Bennell appeared at Liverpool Crown Court in northwest England via videolink due to illness. </s> Former Crewe Alexandra youth football coach Barry Bennell has been found guilty of historic sex offences.

The jury in Bennell’s case, which has been heard at Liverpool Crown Court, has unanimously found him guilty on 36 counts of historic sexual abuse.

The jury returmed not guilty verdicts on three further counts, following directions from the judge, and they have yet to reach a verdict on seven other counts.

They will resume their deliberations tomorrow morning (Wednesday) on the remaining seven counts. </s> LONDON: Former soccer coach Barry Bennell was found guilty of multiple sexual offences against boys in the 1980s, British media reported on Tuesday.



The 64-year-old, who was once a talent spotter at Crewe Alexandra and a coach at Manchester City, was convicted of 36 charges including rape and indecent assault by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court.

The BBC reported the jury had failed to reach verdicts on seven counts and would continue discussions on Wednesday. It said the judge directed them to find Bennell not guilty on three other counts.

Bennell was charged in November 2016 after prosecutors received a file of evidence from Cheshire Police, the force in charge of the area of northwest England where Crewe Alexandra are based.

Bennell, who had denied 48 alleged offences between 1979 and 1990 relating to 11 complainants, chose not to give evidence in his defence during the month-long trial and appeared by video link from prison due to illness.

He had pleaded guilty before the trial started to seven counts of indecent assault involving three boys.

Allegations of child sex abuse in English soccer from the 1970s through to the 1990s have shocked Britain and led to deep soul-searching in the game amid fears hundreds of young boys might have been involved. </s> A paedophile football coach who lived in Milton Keynes has been found guilty of further sex offences against young boys.

Barry Bennell, 64, was convicted of 36 charges - including indecent assault and sexual assault - at Liverpool Crown Court yesterday. The charges related to 10 boys.

The jury is set to return today to deliberate on seven outstanding charges.

Bennell was a former football scout at clubs including Manchester City and Crewe Alexandra in the 1980s.

The predatory coach had been living in Milton Keynes as recently as November 2016, where police raided his home. </s> LONDON (Reuters) - Former soccer coach Barry Bennell was found guilty of multiple sexual offences against boys in the 1980s, British media reported on Tuesday.

The 64-year-old, who was once a talent spotter at Crewe Alexandra and a coach at Manchester City, was convicted of 36 charges including rape and indecent assault by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court.

The BBC reported the jury had failed to reach verdicts on seven counts and would continue discussions on Wednesday. It said the judge directed them to find Bennell not guilty on three other counts.

Bennell was charged in November 2016 after prosecutors received a file of evidence from Cheshire Police, the force in charge of the area of northwest England where Crewe Alexandra are based.

Bennell, who had denied 48 alleged offences between 1979 and 1990 relating to 11 complainants, chose not to give evidence in his defence during the month-long trial and appeared by video link from prison due to illness.

He had pleaded guilty before the trial started to seven counts of indecent assault involving three boys.

Allegations of child sex abuse in English soccer from the 1970s through to the 1990s have shocked Britain and led to deep soul-searching in the game amid fears hundreds of young boys might have been involved. </s> Disgraced former football coach Barry Bennell has been found guilty of three more sex offences against young boys during the 1980s.

The ex-Manchester City and Crewe Alexandra youth coach had already been found guilty of 36 charges on Tuesday, and the BBC has reported that the 64-year-old has now been handed another trio of offences as the trial against him at Liverpool Crown Court continues.

The trial's jury had been deliberating on the three of the final seven outstanding charges brought against Bennell over the past 48 hours, and a majority verdict has now been carried out on those after much discussion.

Bennell, who has appeared via video link over the five-week trial due to illness, was alleged to have sexually and indecently assaulted 10 victims over 30 years ago despite claims to the contrary.

He was quoted as having a 'power hold' over aspiring young footballers between the ages of eight and 15, and had been deemed a 'predatory and determined paedophile' by the prosecution.

The young boys in question were abused at Bennell's home, which they were lured into staying at by Bennell's plethora of video games and exotic pets.

(You may also be interested in Former Football Coach Barry Bennell Found Guilty of 36 Counts of Sex Abuse Against Boys)



Bennell, who now goes by the name Richard Jones, also managed to make the parents of his victims consent into allowing the boys to stay at his home as part of their footballing education.

He was also said to have been treated like 'God' at City's former Maine Road stadium and has already been jailed three times for previous sexual offences against other victims.

Bennell has failed to provide evidence in his defence against the accusations, but shook his hand and muttered to himself after Tuesday's verdicts were passed.

The judge sitting on the trial has told the jury that the remaining four charges brought against Bennell, by an 11th complainant, will be accepted if they reach a majority decision over the outstanding offences. </s> Former football coach and scout Barry Bennell has been sentenced to 31 years for child sexual abuse crimes.

Bennell, 64, was convicted of 43 offences against 11 boys aged eight to 15 between 1979 and 1991 by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court last week.

The former Crewe Alexandra coach and Manchester City scout admitted to seven charges of indecent assault on three boys before the trial, two of whom were also part of the allegations he was tried on.

Bennell, who had previously appeared via a videolink during his trial, was present in the court room for the first time to hear victim impact statements on Monday prior to his sentencing by judge Clement Goldstone.

Goldstone asked police and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to consider if there is "continuing public interest" in bringing new criminal court proceedings against Bennell based on further allegations.

His former employers City this month issued a statement expressing sympathy with the victims and detailing an internal review launched in 2016, which is on-going and has identified allegations of child sex abuse in relation to two men with potential historic connections to the club, one of whom is Bennell.

Crewe, meanwhile, expressed their "deepest sympathies" to the victims of Bennell, and stressed their commitment to "continue to provide cooperation [to the police] as and when required." </s> Former football coach Barry Bennell has been found guilty of multiple counts of indecent assault and male rape after a month-long trial.

Bennell had denied 48 offences, including indecent assault, attempted buggery and buggery, relating to 11 complainants aged between eight and 15.

He was convicted of 38 charges, and a judge directed not guilty verdicts on three counts of indecent assault.

Jurors will resume deliberations on seven outstanding charges tomorrow.

The incidents happened between 1979 and 1990.

Bennell, 64, was "a child molester on an industrial scale" who had a "power hold" over the complainants, a prosecutor told the court.

The jury was directed to return not guilty verdicts in respect of three of the counts of indecent assault because there was no evidence.

Bennell was convicted of two counts of indecently assaulting one young boy between 1979 and 1982.

He was found guilty of three counts of indecent assault and two counts of buggery against a second complainant and four counts of indecent assault against a third complainant.

A jury of six women and five men returned their verdicts this afternoon after being sent out to deliberate on Thursday morning.

During the trial, Liverpool Crown Court heard Bennell compared to the Child Catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, as he invited boys to his house where he had arcade games, a pool table, videos and exotic pets including a puma and a monkey.

In his closing speech, Nicholas Johnson QC, prosecuting, said: "We suggest Mr Bennell is a child molester on an industrial scale and that's why he went to these lengths to get so many lads round to his house."

The 11 complainants, as well as witnesses who Bennell has admitted abusing, gave evidence about abuse by the former Crewe Alexandra coach, who was described as having a "power hold" over them.

The court heard when he was a scout for Manchester City he was treated like "God" at the club's Maine Road ground.

One of Bennell's victims, who he had pleaded guilty to abusing in 1998, said he knew of four men who had been coached by Bennell, including former Wales manager Gary Speed, who had gone on to take their own lives.

But the jury was later told there was no evidence to link their deaths to Bennell.

In transcripts of police interviews which were read in court, Bennell, who has changed his name to Richard Jones, told the police about his grooming process and abuse of boys, but claimed the complainants in the case were "jumping on the bandwagon" following publicity.

The former coach, who appeared via videolink from prison for the hearings, chose not to appear in the witness box and no evidence was called by the defence.

In her closing speech, Eleanor Laws QC, defending, described Bennell as a "sitting target" and asked jurors to put their "understandable potential revulsion" aside when considering verdicts.

She said: "The defendant is a known target and he coached these boys.

"They know when making allegations, whether truthful or not, that they are making allegations against a convicted paedophile." </s> DISGRACED FORMER FOOTBALL coach Barry Bennell was sentenced to 30 years in prison on Monday for abusing 12 boys he coached between 1979 and 1991, with the judge branding him “sheer evil”.

Bennell, 64, who coached at Manchester City and other teams, was found guilty last week of dozens of child sexual offences, including indecent assault, buggery and attempted buggery.

Police have said scores more complainants have come forward since the case started, bringing the number of possible victims to more than 100.

“You were the devil incarnate. You stole their childhoods and their innocence to satisfy your own perversion,” Judge Clement Goldstone said as he read out the sentence in a court in Liverpool, northwest England.

“Your behaviour towards these boys in grooming and seducing them before subjecting them to, in some cases, the most serious, degrading and humiliating abuse was sheer evil.”

Bennell, who has already served three jail terms totalling 15 years for similar offences involving 16 other victims, stared at the floor and nodded as Goldstone handed down the sentence.

Some members of the public began to applaud as he was sent down, but the judge ordered them to stop.

He outlined how Bennell’s abuse had destroyed the enthusiasm his victims felt for football and caused them to suffer problems including suicidal thoughts, alcoholism and depression.

Earlier in the hearing Monday, one of his victims walked over to the courtroom dock and calmly said: “Barry. Barry. Why?”

During his six-week trial, Bennell was accused of committing “industrial scale” levels of abuse against vulnerable pre-pubescent boys in his care.

Victims told how he had a “power hold” over them as they dreamed of becoming professional footballers.

Bennell’s latest crimes emerged in late 2016 when former Liverpool and Tottenham star Paul Stewart broke his 40-year silence and revealed how he was abused as a teenager, shortly after former Crewe player Andy Woodward went public with allegations against Bennell.

The case has sparked wider allegations of sexual and physical abuse of boys at football clubs across Britain in the 1970s and 1980s, some of whom went on to become heroes of the terraces and international stars.

Nearly 800 victims have come forward against more than 100 coaches, leading to accusations that some of the game’s most famous and loved clubs covered up allegations of abuse of boys in their care.
Former association football coach Barry Bennell is convicted of 36 counts of indecent assault against youth footballers in the 1980s and 1990s, following a trial at Liverpool Crown Court.