DORSET Police has praised brave victims for coming forward after a Weymouth child rapist received a lengthy jail sentence for inflicting "horrific sexual abuse" upon children.

As reported, Weymouth paedophile Mark Paul Slater, aged 65 and of Beverley Road, Weymouth, was sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court to 23 years in prison on Monday October 18 2021 after being found guilty following a trial of three charges of rape, 13 counts of indecent assault and one offence of indecency with a child.

The offences, dating back around 30 years, occurred in Weymouth in between 1988 and 1993. A total of 11 charges related to the same victim, who was aged between 14 and 15 when she was sexually abused and raped on a number of occasions by the defendant.

She first came forward to police in 2017 and further enquiries by officers revealed three other victims who had been the subject of Slater’s offending. They had all been teenagers aged under 16 at the time of the offences.

Slater attended for an interview at Weymouth Police Station in May 2018 but denied the allegations.

Detective Constable Montrose, of Dorset Police’s Major Crime Investigation Team, said: “Not only did Mark Slater subject his victims to horrific sexual abuse when they were young, he compounded that by denying his offending and subjecting them to the ordeal of a trial many years later when they are all adults.

“This has been a complex investigation and involved some of the victims giving evidence remotely from different countries around the world where they are now living.

“I want to thank the victims for the strength and courage they have shown in coming forward, supporting the investigation and giving evidence that helped to secure the conviction of Slater so he could be held accountable for his abusive behaviour.”

Dorset Police does not have a picture of Mark Slater