'I just want to feel safe again' says victim of Kettering paedophile who attacked two young girls

Lewis Morgan-Wright, from Kettering, groomed the vulnerable girls leaving them ‘deeply traumatised’.

He was before the court today (Friday, April 11) to be sentenced for repeatedly raping a girl of infant-school age over a series of months. She was degraded, choked, strangled and restrained during the attacks. When she told him to stop he told her to ‘shut up’.

She was threatened by the defendant that harm would come to her if she reported the rapes but eventually she bravely told an adult what was happening to her.

The 23-year-old also sexually abused another girl under 13, who also found the strength to report her appalling experiences to the authorities in November 2022.

The girls both have lifelong anonymity.

The 23-year-old was a member of Kettering General Hospital’s bank staff and when the offending took place he was working in the paediatric A&E department.

Northamptonshire Police said today that their investigation showed his offending was ‘not linked to his job’.

Victim impact statements were read to the court that detailed the wide-ranging effect Morgan-Wright’s offending has had on their lives.

The older girl said that her trust in all men had been destroyed.

"I’m always walking around looking over my shoulder for danger,” she said.

“I just want to feel safe again.”

The girls’ family members said that they had been overcome with ‘helplessness and sorrow’ because of what had happened.

"It’s changed how we see the world,” they said.

After Morgan-Wright was arrested his phone was also seized which when examined, showed that he had used it to access indecent images of children, of which 18 were Category A – the most serious.

Restraints were found in his home and DNA linking one of the victims to him was found in his underwear.

Morgan-Wright was charged with 17 offences in total and in February the case was heard in a 10-day trial at Northampton Crown Court.

On February 20, the jury found him guilty on 12 counts – three counts of rape of a child under 13, two counts of assault of a child under 13 by penetration, four counts of sexual assault of a child under 13, and three counts of making indecent photographs of a child.

Morgan-Wright appeared at today’s sentencing hearing at Northampton Crown Court by videolink from HMP Nottingham.

Before passing sentence, the judge warned those in the court – which included the girls’ loved-ones as well as the defendant’s family – that they should behave properly inside and outside of the court.

The court was told that Morgan-Wright still strenuously denies all the allegations.

Her Honour Judge Rebecca Crane said: “You blamed this on someone else, which was a malicious and outrageous lie that the jury thankfully saw through.”

She outlined the ‘particularly nasty’ features of the case which included threatening the girls if they told adults.

The 23-year-old was given 20 years in prison and an extra five years on extended licence in the community after Judge Crane ruled he posed a danger to children in the future.

He will serve at least 12-and-a-half years before he is eligible for parole.

He was also given an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and barred from working with children and vulnerable adults for life.

Lead investigator Detective Sergeant Chris Waterfall, of the Force’s Protecting Vulnerable People command, said: “This case was one of horrific abuse and firstly, I want to commend the two very brave young girls for the exceptional amount of courage they have shown.

“No one, let alone two little girls, should have had to go through the abuse Morgan-Wright perpetrated, but every step of the way, they have helped our investigation and as a direct result of their heroism, a dangerous predator is now behind bars for a long time.

“Morgan-Wright never owned up to these offences despite the evidence against him – from denying them in his police interview to taking the case all the way to a trial.

“I am pleased that he is now looking at the next 20 years staring at the four walls of a cell - it’s certainly where he belongs, and I hope this case reassures the public just how seriously both the police and the courts take crimes of this nature.”

Kettering General Hospital’s Director of Nursing, Robin Binks, said: “We are aware of the sentencing of a former bank staff member. This individual no longer works within our trust.

"Following the initial allegations, the appropriate authorities, including the ICB and CQC, were notified. A full review has been conducted, and we have found no evidence of related incidents during their employment at the trust. We remain committed to the highest standards of patient safety and safeguarding.”