A woman who arranged for a child to be exploited by a man she knew would abuse her has been jailed for four years, and the man for 12.
Victoria Lewis, 40, from Neath, arranged for an indecent photograph to be taken of the girl in mid-2023, South Wales Police said, and in the same period arranged her travel with a view to her being exploited and set up an act that would amount to a child sex offence.
Shaun Lewis, 40, from Sandfields, made “numerous sexual requests and demands” of the girl, both directly and through Victoria Lewis, the force said.
Victoria Lewis denied arranging the sexual exploitation of a child aged 13 to 17, arranging the commission of an offence of sexual activity with a child, and arranging the travel of another person with a view to exploitation. A jury found her guilty of all three in April.
At their first court appearance in December 2024 both denied everything. Prosecutors said the pair had been involved in arranging indecent photographs, attempted acts of penetration and travel involving a girl under 17 between April and July 2023. Their lawyers argued the messages between them were “fantasy with no intent to harm”, and Victoria Lewis said she had been “simply going along with the conversation”.
A jury did not accept that. Shaun Lewis changed his plea before trial; Victoria Lewis ran the defence and was convicted in April.
He pleaded guilty to two counts of arranging or facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child, one of arranging or facilitating a child sex offence, and one of arranging or facilitating the travel of another person with a view to exploitation.
His 12-year sentence is made up of seven years in custody and a five-year extended licence, the form of sentence used for offenders judged to pose a continuing risk. Both will be on the sex offenders register for life.
“Sickening”
Detective Constable Amanda Jenkins, who led the investigation, said it had been “a particularly depraved case”.
“What Victoria Lewis has done is sickening, and to think about what the child has gone through because of Victoria Lewis is horrifying,” she said. “We cannot praise the victim enough for the bravery she has shown to tell police what happened to her and secure justice against a despicable woman, and that is before even mentioning Shaun Lewis’s part in the offending.”
The force said it never underestimated how hard it was for survivors of sexual abuse to speak out, and hoped the case showed that victims “will be listened to, treated with dignity and respect, and will be supported throughout the judicial process”.
Anyone who has been sexually abused and is not ready to report to police can find support services through the South Wales Police website.
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