The former football coach Barry Bennell was branded “sheer evil” and the “devil incarnate” on Monday after being sentenced to 30 years in prison for subjecting junior players from Manchester City and Crewe Alexandra to hundreds of sexual offences.

Bennell, now facing complaints from another 86 former players, stared at the floor as the judge, Clement Goldstone QC, gave him prison sentences totalling 454 years, to run concurrently.

There were cries of “yes” from the public gallery at Liverpool crown court as he was sentenced to serve the longest individual term of 30 years, with another year on licence. He will be eligible for parole after 15 years.

The judge told Bennell, 64, he had considered imprisoning him for life because of the “trail of psychological devastation” suffered by the victims and said the severity of the sentence was, in part, because the former coach and talent-spotter had shown no remorse for the 12 former players he had raped and molested over several years.



Play Video 7:38 Barry Bennell: unmasking of football paedophile who ruined young lives – video explainer

“In one of your [police] interviews you said that, while it might be fair to describe you as manipulative, cunning and even predatory, you were not evil,” Goldstone told him. “You could not have been more wrong. Your behaviour towards these boys in grooming and seducing them to, in some cases, the most serious, degrading and humiliating abuse was sheer evil.

Barry Bennell: the predatory Pied Piper who made stars and shattered lives Read more

“You knew that to each of these boys football was their life – the career for which they would give anything. And it was the career for which you would take anything and everything they had to offer. You appeared as a god who had it in his gift to help fulfil their ambitions and realise their dreams. In reality, you were the devil incarnate. You stole their childhoods and their innocence to satisfy your own perversion.”

Bennell, described by the prosecution as an “industrial-scale child molester” and a “predatory and determined paedophile”, made a point of not looking at his victims, now in their 40s and 50s, as they read out impact statements detailing how his crimes had affected their lives.



At one point, Gary Cliffe, a former Manchester City junior who was abused hundreds of times, including on the pitch at the club’s former Maine Road ground, approached the dock in an attempt to force Bennell into eye contact. “Why?” Cliffe asked before returning to his seat.

Otherwise, Bennell kept his head down or stared in front of him with his arms folded as the court was told that some victims had been left suicidal, others had turned to drink and drugs and many were still affected by depression, anxiety, panic attacks, flashbacks and nightmares.

'There will be hundreds more,' says player Bennell abused on Maine Road pitch Read more

David Hazeldine, whose brother Mark was coached by Bennell in City’s youth system and committed suicide in 2006, was among those in court. Andy Woodward, whose interview in the Guardian in November 2016 emboldened the other players to come forward, was also present and was thanked by the victims on the court steps.

Bennell had seven-year associations with both City and Crewe. He has served two prison sentences in England, as well as one in the US, and was found guilty last week of 50 offences relating to 12 junior players, aged eight to 14, between 1979 and 1990.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Bennell appearing at Liverpool crown court. Photograph: Elizabeth Cook/PA

Once described as “the star-maker” because of his ability to find talented young players, he admitted seven charges and the jury found him guilty of the other 43 offences.

Wearing a blue sweatshirt with grey jogging bottoms, black Adidas trainers and a silver wristwatch, Bennell played with his hands and occasionally shook his head as his victims told the court that they were taking the power back from him.

“I did not want it, did not ask for it and did not enjoy it,” the youngest victim said. “I was a child, and between the ages of 10 to 13 that monster decided it was fun for him to use me as a sex toy.

“My dad finds it very difficult to think that he was taking me to play football and to become the footballer that I always wanted to be, when for three years he was actually taking me to hell.”

With Bennell jailed for at least 15 years, the judge said the Crown Prosecution Service would have to think carefully about pressing more charges now as the defendant “may well die in prison.”

'We are no longer afraid of you': Barry Bennell's victims speak out Read more

Eleanor Laws, defending Bennell, said her client was in remission from cancer, having needed two operations to remove tumours, and was subject to an “onerous” regime that meant he had to be fed via a tube eight times a day. To audible disquiet from the public gallery, she said he was on anti-anxiety medication and had undertaken treatment programmes to deal with his paedophilia.



Addressing Bennell, Goldstone said: “Sadly, you did not learn the importance of remorse.”

Speaking outside court, Micky Fallon, one of Bennell’s victims, said that the sentence reflected the seriousness of the crimes and the distress Bennell had caused.

“Today we looked evil in the face and we smiled because Barry Bennell, we have won,” he said. “Today we hand our shame and our guilt and our sadness back to you. It should never have been ours to carry in the first place.”</s>Former football coach Barry Bennell has been sentenced to 31 years on sexual abuse charges involving underage boys.

Per the Guardian's Daniel Taylor, Judge Clement Goldstone described Bennell as ''sheer evil'' as he announced the verdict.

Per the report, 86 more people have come forward during the trial against the former football coach, who worked with Manchester City and Crewe Alexandra during his career.

Now 64 years old, Bennell has already served two prison sentences in the United Kingdom and one in the United States. He was found guilty of 50 offences last week, with the crimes involving a total of 12 players taking place between 1979 and 1990. Those players ranged from eight to 14 years old.

Per Taylor, Goldstone did not hold back as he read the verdict: ''To those boys you appeared as a god...in reality you were the devil incarnate. You stole their childhood and their innocence to satisfy your own perversions.''

Monday's court proceedings marked the first time Bennell faced his victims. The coach spent seven years at Manchester City and was with Crewe from 1984 until 1992.</s>Liverpool: A former English youth soccer coach was jailed today for 30 years for abusing 12 young footballers after the judge called him the "devil incarnate."

Barry Bennell, a former coach at Crewe and scout for Manchester City, was convicted at Liverpool Crown Court of 50 child sexual offences committed between 1979 and 1991. "Your behavior 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," Judge Clement Goldstone told the 64-year-old Bennell.

Bennell looked at the floor and nodded as the judge sentenced him. Some members of the public began to applaud as he was sent down, but were stopped by the judge. Goldstone said Bennell had appeared to his victims as a God.

"In reality, you were the devil incarnate," the judge added. "You stole their childhoods and their innocence to satisfy your own perversion." Goldstone said Bennell's abuse had destroyed the enthusiasm his victims had for playing football and had led to them suffering problems including suicidal thoughts, alcoholism and depression. Bennell has already served three jail terms, totalling 15 years, for similar offences involving 16 other victims in England and the United States.</s>Former football coach Barry Bennell has been sentenced to 31 years in prison for 50 counts of child sex abuse.

Bennell, 64, was convicted of raping and molesting 12 boys aged eight to 15 between 1979 and 1991.

Judge Clement Goldstone QC described Bennell as "sheer evil" as he handed down the verdict.

"To those boys you appeared as a god... in reality you were the devil incarnate. You stole their childhood and their innocence to satisfy your own perversions," he said.

The judge said that Bennell had left a "trail of psychological devastation", with victims crying "yes" as the sentence was read out.

Victims told the court they had suffered from anxiety, depression, panic attacks and PTSD as a result of the abuse.

"I did not want it, did not ask for it and did not enjoy it. I was a child, and between the ages of 10 to 13 that monster decided it was fun for him to use me as a sex toy, someone that he could get his kicks from," one victim told the court.

"He took my innocence, my virginity and my football career. He preyed on his victims, groomed us while grooming our parents," he said.

"Even though it's over it's not over because it will always be in my head. No one should have to go through what that man put us through," another victim said.

The prosecution described Bennell, who watched from the docks as his victims read out impact statements, as an "industrial-scale child molester" and a "predatory and determined paedophile."

It was the first time Bennell appeared in front of his victims as he made his appearance via video-link throughout the rest of his five-week trial.</s>Barry Bennell, the serial pedophile whose abuse of young boys rocked the world of soccer, was described as "the devil incarnate" after being sentenced to 31 years in jail on Monday.

The 64-year-old former football coach, now known as Richard Jones, was sentenced for 50 counts of child sexual abuse against 12 boys between the ages of eight and 15 from 1979 to 1991.

During his summation, Judge Clement Goldstone QC told Liverpool Crown Court that Bennell's actions were "sheer evil."

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

He added that Bennell had appeared to his victims as a god, adding: "In reality, you were the devil incarnate. You stole their childhoods and their innocence to satisfy your own perversion."</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>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.</s>Paedophile former football coach Barry Bennell was branded ‘the devil incarnate’ by a judge today who jailed him for 30 years for abusing 12 young boys between 1979 and 1991.

Sentencing 64-year-old ex-Manchester City scout Bennell, Judge Clement Goldstone QC said he had ‘stolen their childhoods’.

Bennell looked down at the floor and nodded as the judge delivered his remarks at Liverpool Crown Court.

He regularly shook his head as the judge recapped his ‘evil’ offences, at time smiling and sighing. He also mouthed ‘no’, raised his eyebrows and stared at the ceiling.

Bennell smirked again when he was led from the dock to begin his lengthy sentence. People in the public began to applaud.

The ex-scout was convicted last week of 50 child sexual offences, including rape, committed between the late ‘70s and early ‘90s.

The court was told he would serve half his sentence in custody with the rest on licence, with an additional licence period of one year.

Judge Goldstone QC, the Recorder of Liverpool, told him: “Your behaviour towards these boys in grooming and seducing them before subjecting them to, in some cases, the most, most serious, degrading and humiliating abuse was sheer evil.”

The judge said Bennell had appeared to his victims as ‘a God’ but added: “In reality, you were the devil incarnate. You stole their childhoods and their innocence to satisfy your own perversion.”

Bennell’s abuse, Judge Goldstone added, had ‘destroyed’ the enthusiasm his victims had for playing football and had led to them suffering problems including suicidal thoughts, alcoholism and depression.

He added: “Each has suffered and now, more than 30 to 35 years after you ruined these boys’, now mens’, lives, continues to suffer.”

Bennell, who was also a coach at Crewe Alexandra, has already served three jail terms, totalling 15 years, for similar offences involving 16 other victims.

During his six-week trial, he was said to have committed ‘industrial scale’ levels of abuse against vulnerable, pre-pubescent boys in his care. Complainants told how he had a “power hold” over them as they dreamed of becoming professional footballers.

Earlier in the sentencing hearing victim impact statements were read out - some by his victims from the witness box and some by prosecutor Nicholas Johnson QC.

One victim told the court: “Not a day goes by without thinking about the abuse I received. I was just a child.”

Another of his victims walked over to the courtroom dock and calmly said: “Barry. Barry. Why?”

Eleanor Laws QC, mitigating for Bennell, said he had suffered from cancer in the past and had operations to remove tumours from his tongue in 2004 and 2016. She said he was also on anti-anxiety medication and added: “All of this, we submit, means his time in custody will be less comfortable and more difficult than it would be for someone without all these concerns.”

An additional 86 complainants have now come forward to say they too were abused by Bennell.</s>Serial paedophile Barry Bennell was labelled "the devil incarnate" as he was sentenced to 30 years in prison for abusing young boys. Former football coach Bennell will serve half his sentence in custody with the rest on licence, with an additional licence period of one year. The 64-year-old had been convicted of 50 child sexual offences against 12 boys who he coached, which took place between 1979 and 1991.

Police now believe Bennell may have more than 100 victims in total. He has already served three jail terms, totalling 15 years, for similar offences involving 16 other victims. A further 86 people have now come forward to say they too were abused by him. Today, some of his victims had a chance to confront him face-to-face as they gave their impact statements in court. Victim Gary Cliffe approached the former Crewe Alexandra coach in the dock to ask "why?", but got no reply. In his statement, Mr Cliffe said it was still "hard to effectively put into words the hell and mental suffering I have endured", 30 years on from the abuse. He added: "I look back on my childhood with regret and deep sadness."

Another victim, Christopher Unsworth, said Bennell "destroyed" his childhood dreams of being a footballer. "What is now even more upsetting for me is the realisation that I have sacrificed my own chance of having a family of my own due to a medical procedure I elected for," he said. "I made this decision because of the overwhelming fear I had of not being able to protect my own children against predatory people like Bennell, and I could not risk the same horrendous abuse happening to them." He added: "Today I give my guilt and shame I have carried over the years back to you." Bennell, who wore a blue jumper and white polo shirt for the hearing, looked at the floor as victims read out their impact statements. He repeatedly shook his head and mouthed "no" as the judge summarised his offences in the sentencing. The coach smirked as he was led from the dock to begin his lengthy sentence.

Speaking outside court, victim Andy Woodward, whose decision to go public led to the latest trial, said he had mixed emotions. He said: "No sentence is long enough for that man and right to the death he didn't show any remorse or say sorry to anyone." Steve Walters, who was also abused, said Bennell had shown "not one ounce of remorse, not one shred of decency" throughout the case. Survivors urged others who are suffering abuse to speak out as they pledged to help others within sport. Mr Unsworth said the support they had received through the criminal case showed that ultimately "Love will always conquer evil." Detective Inspector Sarah Oliver of Cheshire Police said she hoped the sentence would bring some closure to those he attacked. "No term of imprisonment can ever return a childhood taken away but I hope that this sentence will serve as a beacon of light to others that have been abused," she said. "No matter how long ago that has taken place, justice can still be served and offenders can still be held to account."</s>One of the victims of Barry Bennell walked across a courtroom and confronted him today before the paedophile football coach was jailed for 30 years.

Bennell is feared to have more than 100 victims after decades abusing young boys he was supposed to be coaching.

Jailing him today, a judge said: 'To those boys you appeared as a god... in reality you were the devil incarnate. You stole their childhoods and their innocence.'

Bennell will serve at least 15 years behind bars before being eligible for parole. It is likely the 64-year-old, who recently had cancer, will die in jail.

He was sent down after eight of his victims came face to face with their abuser at Liverpool Crown Court.

Gary Cliffe, a former young star who is now a police officer, read out his victim personal statement from the witness box and then approached the glass dock, asking calmly: 'Barry. Barry. Why?' He was escorted back to his seat by a member of court staff.

In his sentencing remarks, the judge later told Bennell: 'Your behaviour towards these boys in grooming and seducing them before subjecting them to, in some cases, the most most serious, degrading and humiliating abuse was sheer evil.'

Bennell, 64, looked at the floor and nodded as the judge sentenced him. Some members of the public began to applaud as he was sent down, but were stopped by the judge.

Bennell, wearing a pale blue jumper and grey jogging bottoms, had not reacted when the victim personal statements were read out.

One victim told the court: 'Not a day goes by without thinking about the abuse I received. I was just a child. I am determined to claim back control of my life and live it to its fullest.'

The court heard from another complainant, Chris Unsworth, who has also waived anonymity, that Bennell had 'destroyed' his dream of becoming a professional footballer.

Another victim said: 'I feel I have never escaped my past and have never learned to cope ... I feel Barry and Crewe Alexandra have completely stolen my life from me. The upset this man and Crewe Alexandra has caused me really is immeasurable.'

Another complainant to go in the witness box told the court: 'This man took my one and only childhood without a second thought and with no regret or remorse.

'My parents feel responsible for not seeing what was going on but I do not hold them responsible at all in any way.'

The fourth complainant to read out his statement in court said: 'This monster decided it was fun to him use me as a sex toy. Someone he could get his kicks from.'

Eleanor Laws QC, mitigating, said Bennell had suffered from cancer in the past and had operations to remove tumours from his tongue in 2004 and 2016 but was presently cancer free. She said he was also on anti-anxiety medication.

She said: 'All of this, we submit, means his time in custody will be less comfortable and more difficult than it would be for someone without all these concerns.'

Miss Laws said Bennell had served a total of 10-and-a-half years in custody over three prison terms but had been at large for a total of nine years since 1994.

There was no suggestion he had committed any offences since the mid-90s and had undergone a number of treatment programmes while in custody, she added.

Bennell, a former Crewe Alexandra coach and Manchester City scout, may have had well over 100 victims as 86 people have come forward since his case was reported to say they were also molested.

Bennell was found to have targeted 12 victims between 1979 and 1991 in the latest case to come to court.

Bennell has already served three jail terms - one in the United States - since 1995 for similar offences involving 16 separate victims.

After watching his trial via a video link, Bennell was produced from custody at HMP Woodhill in Milton Keynes today.

Bennell had previously been allowed to appear via videolink for health reasons because he needs to be regularly fed by tube after he developed oral cancer more than a decade ago.

Following the close of the prosecution case he chose not to give evidence in his defence and none was called on his behalf.

During the trial, prosecutor Nicholas Johnson QC described Bennell as a 'devious paedophile' who systematically abused vulnerable pre-pubescent boys.

Complainants told how he had a 'power hold' over them as they dreamed of becoming professional footballers.

Bennell was compared to the Child Catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, luring boys to his homes in the Peak District where he had arcade games and exotic pets including a puma and a monkey.

He also abused them on trips away and in his car while on the way to and from football training.

Four players coached by Bennell – including Speed – went on to take their own lives, the jury were told. However, the court heard that there was no evidence to link their deaths to Bennell.

The jury returned guilty verdicts on 43 counts of abuse against 11 boys, involving offences of buggery, attempted buggery and indecent assault.

Before the trial started last month, Bennell pleaded guilty to seven counts of indecent assault involving three boys, two of whom were part of the trial.

The defendant, who has changed his name to Richard Jones, told police he admitted having a 'grooming process' and being attracted to teenage boys.

But he denied most of the allegations and said complainants were 'jumping on the bandwagon' following publicity sparked by one of his previous victims, Andy Woodward, waiving his anonymity to give media interviews in November 2016.

Many people were warned, so how could this vile paedophile have got away with his crimes for so long?

By Liz Hull for The Daily Mail

At the conclusion of his trial yesterday, several whistleblowers came forward to allege bosses at both and Crewe Alexandra – where Bennell coached – and at the Football Association were warned about his behaviour, but hushed it up or failed to act.

It was reported that Bennell swapped young victims with other paedophiles, including Frank Roper, a football scout who abused England star Paul Stewart. Roper died 11 years ago.

In the early 80s, cancer patient Bennell also allegedly teamed up with paedophile coach Bruce McLean, who was jailed in 1997.

At Manchester City, where Bennell was as an unofficial scout from 1982 to 1985, rumours were apparently rife about his behaviour. But he was such a good coach that nobody wanted to listen.

Former FA youth coach Steve Fleet said it was 'general knowledge' that Bennell was 'dodgy'.

He told Sportsmail: 'I knew who he was. Everyone on the football scene did. You'd hear it on the coaching circuit. 'Don't touch him with a bargepole – there's something not right about him.' It was the gossip.

'It was nauseating. The kids would all follow him. The way he spoke to them, it was like baby talk, he was too familiar with them.'

Fleet, 79, said he passed on his concerns to Ken Barnes, the club's chief scout who died in 2010.

'We were great friends and the only confrontation we ever had was over Barry Bennell,' said Fleet. 'I told him – I can't work with him. I put my job on the line.'

'I think Ken thought football was a man's game where it couldn't happen. Maybe he was naive.'

Police who later interviewed senior management at City for Florida investigators said the club was 'evasive' when quizzed about the reasons for Bennell's 1985 departure.

Bennell moved to League Two outfit Crewe, where for the next seven years he groomed boys on an 'industrial scale.' Lord Carlile, QC, who prosecuted the 1998 case against Bennell accused Crewe of 'institutionalised failings' and 'brushing abuse under the carpet'.

Both Crewe and Manchester City are conducting their own investigations into historic abuse and have co-operated with the Cheshire police inquiry. Sources say more prosecutions could follow.

In a statement last night Crewe insisted it had no idea Bennell was a child abuser until he was convicted of raping a boy of 13 on a soccer tour to America in 1994.

Manchester City extended its sympathy to victims as it revealed it had identified another abuser – John Broome – who was operating at the club in the late 1960s. The FA also urged anyone affected to contact their inquiry team.

Victim Gary Cliffe, who was molested while at Manchester City, said: 'If those in positions of responsibility had challenged Bennell, hundreds of wrecked lives could have been saved. They buried their heads.'

Kim Harrison, a specialist abuse lawyer from Slater and Gordon, said: 'Serious questions need to be asked about how this dangerous rapist was allowed to carry out years of abuse on so many young boys in plain sight, much as Savile did at the BBC.'

Decades of abuse before he was finally brought to justice: Timeline of the Barry Bennell case Early 1970s: Starts his coaching career aged about 18 at renowned London-based junior club Senrab FC, Bennell told police. Mid to late 1970s: Coaches at Butlin's holiday camp in Pwllheli, North Wales, and also begins working with Manchester youth team Whitehill FC, he also tells detectives. November 1979 to July 1981: Employed as a resident social worker at the now closed Taxal Edge children's home in Whaley Bridge, Derbyshire. 1982 to 1985: Coaches youth teams in Derbyshire which provided several youth recruits for Manchester City. Bennell taught boys at holiday camps and summer courses as well as arranging tours 1985 to 1992: Bennell is employed by or on behalf of Crewe Alexandra apart from a spell coaching in Georgia, United States, in 1989 and 1990. 1990: Marries Linda Woodward, sister of one of his abuse victims, Andy Woodward. The couple go on to have two children. 1992 to 1994: Bennell is employed by or on behalf of Stoke City. 1994: He is arrested while on a 10-week tour of the United States when coaching a Staffordshire youth team. 1995: He is convicted in Florida of four counts of indecent assault on a young boy and sentenced to four years in jail. Spends time in custody prior to his conviction. His victim was also abused by Bennell in Britain, which leads to a domestic investigation. Bennell appearing before a US court in Jacksonville, Florida in 1995 January 1997: Bennell is featured in the Channel 4 documentary series Dispatches. Former youth player Ian Ackley waives his anonymity and tells the Soccer's Foul Play programme he was sexually abused by Bennell. September 1997: US authorities deport Bennell to the UK at the conclusion of his sentence and on his arrival he is charged with sexual offences relating to a number of complainants. June 1998: He pleads guilty at Chester Crown Court on the first day of his scheduled trial to 23 counts of sexual abuse relating to 15 complainants, aged from nine to 14, between 1978 and 1992. Victims include Mr Ackley and Mr Woodward. Twenty-two alleged offences are left to lie on file. He is sentenced to nine years in prison. May 2015: Bennell pleads guilty at the same court on the first day of his scheduled trial to sexually abusing a 12-year-old boy in 1980. He is jailed for two years. His victim did not come forward in 1997 because of the effect he said it would have on his mother. When she died in 2013 he contacted police. The court hears he was abused at Bennell's living quarters at Taxal Edge while staying with him as he took part in coaching sessions in Macclesfield. November 2016: Mr Woodward waives his anonymity to give emotional, powerful interviews to the Guardian and BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme. It leads to a number of complainants against Bennell contacting police and a fresh investigation begins. January 2018: Bennell goes on trial at Liverpool Crown Court accused of 48 historical child sex offences against 11 complainants between 1979 and 1990. February 2018: Bennell is found guilty of 43 counts of child sexual abuse against 11 victims.
Former coach Barry Bennell is sentenced to 31 years in prison for 50 offences against 12 boys between 1979 and 1990.