A HEALTHCARE worker who abused two vulnerable patients – then fled to the UK after being arrested – has been jailed for five and a half years.
Vincent Charles Roberts tried to kiss one of the women and kissed, touched and exchanged explicit messages with his second victim.
Both women were being treated for mental-health problems at the time, the Superior Number of the Royal Court, which convenes for Jersey’s most serious cases, was told yesterday.
Roberts denied eight counts of ‘committing a prohibited act with any other person suffering from a mental disorder’ but was convicted by Jurats following a trial in February.
Roberts (57) made flirtatious comments towards one of the patients and, in May 2020, tried to kiss her when they were alone in a room together, but she slapped him in the face.
Later that year he began to engage in sexual behaviour with another woman in his care. They would kiss and touch each other and exchanged explicit messages and photos on Snapchat, the court heard.
Crown Advocate Simon Crowder, prosecuting, said Roberts was arrested in February 2021 and denied the charges. He fled initially to the Isle of Wight and then to Hampshire, where he was re-arrested and handed over to the States police in August last year.
Advocate Crowder said that ‘a significant degree of planning’ had been involved in his offences.
‘He preyed upon two women when they were vulnerable and were receiving medical attention,’ he said.
‘They were in a place where their safety should have been of paramount importance.’
The court heard that the women had both suffered setbacks in their recovery as a result, with the first victim left distrustful of men, including male healthcare workers.
The advocate recommended a sentence of five years and six months.
Advocate Ian Jones, defending, said Roberts accepted that he had ‘crossed the boundaries’ but added that the activity with the second victim had been consensual.
He said: ‘He abused his position of trust. But if it was not consensual, Mr Roberts would be prosecuted under a different law. In my submission, Mr Roberts did not groom either of them.’
Of the second victim, he said: ‘We know she engaged in flirtatious behaviour. At no point did she say she didn’t want to do it.
‘It was illegal – but it was consensual.’
However, the Jurats agreed to the prosecution request for a jail term of five years and six months.
Commissioner Sir John Saunders said of Roberts: ‘He was dealing with extremely vulnerable patients and his job was to try to help them in their recovery.
‘He was meant to care for them, and that included protecting them against themselves.’
Roberts was placed on the Sex Offenders Register for ten years and banned from direct or indirect contact with either of the victims.
The Jurats sitting were Stephen Jones, Terry Ferbrache, Joanne Wyatt, Heather Reed and Tina Le Poidevin.
