Sexual predator who groped and kissed children walking through city centre.

Sexual Predator Jailed for Groping and Kissing Children in Colchester

Stefan Pritchard, 32, has been sentenced to two years and nine months in prison for sexually assaulting four girls, aged between 11 and 14, in Colchester.

The attacks took place on different dates between July 2021 and June 2022. In one incident, Pritchard groped a 14-year-old girl's bottom from underneath her skirt, causing her to suffer panic attacks and flashbacks.

Judge David Turner KC, presiding over the case at Chelmsford Crown Court, expressed concern that the incidents were a "manifestation of his inner loneliness and turmoil."

Pritchard, of Fingringhoe Road, Colchester, pleaded guilty to four counts of sexual assault on a child, two counts of assaulting an emergency worker, and one count of sexual assault of a child aged under 13.

Prosecutor Emma Kutner detailed Pritchard's offenses, including stroking the hair of an 11-year-old girl and telling her she was beautiful, hugging a 14-year-old girl from behind and kissing her on the neck, cheek, and lips, and stroking the breasts and thighs of a 13-year-old girl.

The court heard that Pritchard lives with a mild disorder impacting his intellectual development, but Judge Turner emphasized that it was not an excuse for his actions.

"These were unprovoked, gratuitous public gropings and sexual assaults of young women," Judge Turner stated.

Defense attorney Donal Lawler argued that Pritchard's upbringing had left him "immensely damaged." He was also made subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for ten years.