Sex Offender Jailed for Placing Ads for Topless Cleaners

A sex attacker who was banned from advertising for women to contact him has been jailed after placing 32 ads for what he called "consensual sexual entertainment."

Matthew Bushell, 48, was convicted of two sexual assaults in May 2014 after putting adverts on Gumtree for female cleaners.

In 2013, he lured two women to his home in Southport under false pretences and molested them. One victim described how he "grabbed her, kissed her and sucked her fingers," while the other said he "put his hand down her pants and touched her breasts and offered her money to stay the night."

Bushell was sentenced to a hospital order and hit with an indefinite Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) following the convictions. However, he continued to breach the order, placing ads for topless cleaners and sexual services on various websites.

In February 2021, police discovered that Bushell had placed 32 adverts on the website Viva Street under the username "CoolBoy47," inviting women to engage in sex work.

Bushell admitted to placing the adverts and said he received "a fair few responses" but only chatted to them on the phone before stopping because he feared it would be discovered.

He was sentenced to two years in prison by Judge Stuart Driver, QC, who said Bushell's culpability was high because "it was a persistent and deliberate breach" and the harm involved was high because "there was a risk of very serious harm or distress."

"You intended to get women inside your house and the probation officer in the report concludes that you represent a high risk of harm to women," Judge Driver said.

The judge noted Bushell's mental health problems, including Asperger's syndrome and obsessive compulsive disorder, but said he was not willing to suspend the prison sentence.

"You represent a risk and a danger to the public," Judge Driver said.