Two Men Imprisoned for Decades-Long Abuse of Boys

David Marsh and Anthony Whitehead have been handed prison sentences totaling over 30 years after being found guilty of sexually abusing six young boys across a period of two decades. According to Greater Manchester Police (GMP), the men had previously been convicted of grooming and sexually abusing the victims, who were between the ages of nine and 13 at the commencement of the abuse. Marsh, aged 74, received a 27-year jail term, while Whitehead, 72, was sentenced to seven years for crimes perpetrated in Manchester and Rochdale during the 1980s and 1990s. DC Andrea Richards stated that the men, whose joint trial took place last month at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court, exploited the “vulnerabilities” of their victims. DC Richards further explained that the victims came from “dysfunctional backgrounds” and were targeted by Marsh and Whitehead while residing on the streets of Rochdale. She commented: “They knew these boys at that time had nothing.” A police investigation, which lasted five years, commenced in 2019 following a disclosure by a man to an authority figure that he had been sexually abused by two individuals during his childhood. Detectives discovered that one of the alleged abusers had died, but the second man, Marsh, from Northenden, was still living. The police force indicated that investigators subsequently pieced together evidence revealing a prolonged pattern of criminal behavior by Marsh and Whitehead, who is from Atherton. Marsh was found guilty of 27 charges of indecent assault, one charge of buggery, and one charge of attempted buggery (offences now categorized as rape and attempted rape, respectively) against victims under the age of 16. Whitehead was convicted of six charges of indecent assault against victims under 16. DC Richards commented that neither man had displayed any regret for their actions, believing they had evaded justice. She further stated: “[Marsh] has deceived these young boys and he’s been able to live this life for many years, but now he’s eventually been caught.” She expressed her conviction that additional victims have yet to report their experiences, adding: “One of the boys said to me that there will be more victims because [Marsh] was so persistent on what he needed from young boys.” She continued: “It got to the stage where some of the boys were too old for him so he would then move on to younger boys.” The charity We Are Survivors has provided assistance to the victims of Marsh and Whitehead during the legal proceedings. Duncan Craig, the chief executive, encouraged anyone who has suffered abuse to come forward. He remarked: “You do not need to step straight into a police station. There [have been] many, many, many times where people will come to our service and access support for years before they even think about speaking to the police.” He concluded by saying: “Please don’t feel like you’re on your own because, even though it does feel like that, I guarantee that you’re not.” For more content, listeners can access the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. Story ideas can also be submitted to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk and via Whatsapp at 0808 100 2230. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content found on external websites. Information regarding their approach to external linking is available.