A 49-YEAR-OLD man who sexually abused a child over a ten-year period and went on the run, sparking an Islandwide manhunt, has been found guilty of all the charges against him.
Richard Louis Romeril denied the allegations the girl made against him throughout his six-day Assize trial and insisted she was lying.
But the jury in the Royal Court believed her testimony, and after a day of deliberation they convicted him on ten charges. They included attempted rape, sexual touching without consent, forcing someone to engage in sex acts and indecent assaults.
There was no conclusive physical evidence, but an expert in child sexual abuse pointed out during the trial that offences rarely left any lasting physical traces.
The jury heard that Romeril viewed indecent images of children online – though he denied having any sexual interest in the girl.
A number of Romeril’s electrical devices were seized and examined during the police investigation. They were found to contain a large quantity of indecent images of children.
Romeril pleaded guilty to four offences relating to the indecent images in December 2023 and will be sentenced for these offences later in the year.
The jury also heard that 11 pairs of girls’ underpants had been found under his mattress, with Romeril claiming he did not know where they came from.
While giving evidence during the trial, the girl said that the abuse, which went on throughout her childhood, “escalated as I got older”.
Romeril failed to turn up to a police interview last year, and a major search-and-rescue mission had to be launched to find him.
Jersey Fire and Rescue Service, the police, search dogs, drones and a French Navy helicopter were all mobilised. Flyers were distributed bearing a description of him and a photo taken from CCTV.
Cameras had footage of him buying camping equipment from Blacks in King Street, and he was seen again on CCTV at B&Q that same morning. His car, a black Kia Sportage, was later found at Noirmont Point.
Romeril was eventually discovered in Route des Hêtres, in St Peter, just before 2am on 14 September by a police officer on patrol.
Following the trial, Detective Constable Sian Dupre called it a “harrowing case of significant sexual abuse”.
She said: “The victim in this case has shown incredible courage coming forward to police, with Romeril’s constant denials in the face of overwhelming evidence only adding extra stress to the victim, so their resilience and strength should be commended.”
She added: “Although this was a historic event, the evidence was compelling. We are committed to investigating and prosecuting all sexual offenders, no matter how long ago the offences occurred.”
The States police said they continued to work with key partners and advocacy services such as the Sexual Assault Referral Centre at Dewberry House, Jersey Action Against Rape and Freeda, formerly the Jersey Women’s Refuge, to encourage victims of sexual crime to come forward.
