Former Lincolnshire Scout Leader Jailed for 14 Years for Sex Offenses

A former Lincolnshire scout leader, John Pycock, 83, was sentenced to 14 years in prison today (Friday) after being found guilty of sex offenses against a boy over three decades ago.

Pycock denied sexually abusing the boy in the late 1980s and early 1990s while he was a scout leader in Billinghay and then Fiskerton. However, a jury at Lincoln Crown Court convicted him of indecency with a child, two counts of indecent assault, and two other serious sexual offenses.

Sentence was adjourned on Tuesday to allow for an impact statement from the victim, who is now an adult and cannot be named to protect his anonymity.

Judge Catarina Sjolin Knight, who heard evidence from the victim during the seven-day trial, sentenced Pycock to 14 years in prison. His license period was also extended by a year.

This is Pycock's third prison term. He was previously jailed for six years in November 2020 after admitting to three charges involving sex offenses against a young girl.

Pycock, formerly of Winn Street, Lincoln, was also previously jailed for 51 months in June 2014 for admitting to five sex offenses against young boys. At the time, the court heard that he invited the boys to his house and abused them while his wife worked night shifts as a nurse.

He had been released from that sentence by the time the 2020 offenses came to light.

Pycock, who hung his head but showed little reaction when the jury returned their guilty verdicts on Tuesday, will also have to register as a Sex Offender for the rest of his life.

Defense barrister Jon Dee argued that Pycock's previous jail term in 2014 should be considered when determining the length of his current sentence, as it involved boys from the same period as his most recent conviction. Mr. Dee accepted that the same circumstances did not apply to Pycock's 2020 conviction.

The court heard that Pycock was in poor health and now faces the prospect of never leaving prison.