Teacher who sexually abused pupil jailed for two years

A teacher who sexually abused a teenage pupil has been jailed for two years and been placed on the sex offenders register for life.

Judith Evans, 33, of Elmwood Grove in Newtownabbey, County Antrim, admitted grooming and having sexual intercourse with a schoolboy.

She was a teacher at Belfast Boys' Model School when the offences occurred.

Speaking after the hearing at Belfast Crown Court on Friday, a senior police officer described Evans as a "cold, calculating child predator".

Evans, a mother of two, was sentenced to a total of four years - half of which will be served in custody and half on licence after her release.

She admitted several charges including sexual communication with a child, meeting a child following sexual grooming, sexual activity with a child involving penetration and possessing indecent images of the schoolboy.

The offences were committed between 1 March and 17 May 2024.

Evans also admitted perverting the course of justice between 13 and 27 June 2024, by making a false allegation that she was sexually assaulted by the teenager.

Evans was given a five-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order, banning her from working with children and vulnerable people.

Imposing the sentence, the judge said Evans had "groomed this child, who was vulnerable by reason of age and personal circumstances, basking in his adolescent attraction towards her".

The court heard that Evans and the child exchanged thousands of text messages, the majority of which were sexually explicit, and that she sent him explicit videos and images.

They also met outside of school on three occasions and Evans drove them to locations including Black Mountain and Nutt's Corner, where they engaged in sexual activities, including intercourse.

The court heard that Evans's offending began when the child was going through a "hard time" and she began keeping him behind at school when she noticed a change in his demeanour.

The boy opened up to her and Evans gave him her personal phone number and email address, after which they began messaging each other.

The judge said that, from an early stage, the messages were sexual in nature.

The boy ran away and threatened to take his own life after his family became aware of the contact from Evans and the police became involved.

Evans was arrested in May 2024 and during a police interview she replied "no comment" to all questions.

When she was interviewed again in June that year, she claimed that the teenager had threatened her and raped her in her car.

She also told police that he would show her a picture of him holding a gun and that his father was in the Ulster Defence Association (UDA), a loyalist paramilitary group.

The judge said "every aspect of that account was false".

"There is no question that the defendant's behaviour and the aftermath of the discovery of these offences has had a profound effect on this young victim and his family," added the judge.

"Teenagers need protection because their immaturity prevents them from appreciating the long-term harm caused by inappropriate sexual activity."

As Evans wept in the dock, the judge said her two children were now being cared for by their father and that she was "struggling to cope with her current circumstances".

The judge added that while Evans had reported a number of traumatic events in her life and had expressed remorse and guilt over the harm she had caused, there was a lack of explanation regarding her offending.

The judge said: "In truth, there is no explanation other than a selfish desire for attention and intimacy, which she considered was lacking in her relationship at that time."

Evans has accepted "she will never teach again", said the judge.

A spokesperson for Belfast Boys' Model School said they recognised "what a difficult and distressing time this has been for the young person".

"We fully understand the impact this has caused throughout the wider school community and would reassure all pupils and staff that the protection, safety and wellbeing of our pupils continues to be our highest priority."

The spokesperson added that the school has "robust safeguarding processes".

Det Ch Insp Jill Duffie of the Police Service of Northern Ireland described Evans as a "cold, calculating child predator who abused her position of trust by taking advantage of a young boy".

"She preyed on his vulnerabilities and built an inappropriate 'friendship' with the boy before then further grooming him and sexually exploiting him.

"The messages exchanged between her and her underage pupil were highly sexual and nothing short of sickening.

"As a result of the abuse he was subjected to, the victim has suffered greatly with mental health struggles and has shown immense bravery to bring her to justice today."

The senior officer said there was "still a societal stigma surrounding male victims of abuse" and she encouraged anyone who had been abused in a similar way to contact police.