A MAN has been convicted of a string of historic sexual offences against teenage girls by a Royal Court Jury.
Shay John Edward Bester (50) was found guilty of six counts of rape, two of unlawful sexual intercourse, one of assault and one of procuring an act of gross indecency.
Three women appeared in court last week to describe how Bester committed the offences against them several decades ago. Each alleged that he raped them multiple times.
Jurors found Bester not guilty of one charge of having unlawful sexual intercourse on several occasions, but convicted him of an alternative charge – that he had committed this once.
The jury could not reach a decision on two counts of rape and one of procuring an act of gross indecency.
In her closing speech, Crown Advocate Emma Hollywood pointed to the similar accounts of each of the three women of the behaviour of Bester, who she described as “a sexual predator who targeted vulnerable teenagers”.
Similarities between the three women’s reports “cannot be mere coincidence”, she said, but were “a striking pattern as to how this man behaves”.
“They do not know the detail of what happened to one another. They are not friends. They do not speak,” she said. “Different women, different times, same man, same behaviour. He repeats history time and time again.”
She reminded jurors that Bester had previously been convicted of trafficking, raping and assaulting a vulnerable teenager.
“The defendant has been accused not once, not twice, not three times, but a total of four times, of rape, by four separate women,” she added.
And a search of Bester’s devices revealed he had accessed “rape pornography” and had “a particular interest in female vulnerability”, she said.
Advocate Olaf Blakeley, defending, reminded jurors that to convict Bester, they had to be sure that he was guilty.
“The prosecution are telling you that these are similarities that exist. Of course they do, we’re talking about the same man,” he said.
But Advocate Blakeley pointed to variations between the women’s accounts, which he said “could not be more different”.
He acknowledged that some complainants take a long time to come forward – but said that the three women “made no historical record or reporting of rape until now”.
Advocate Blakeley said that Bester thought he had the women’s consent.
Commissioner Andrew Oldland was presiding.
Speaking after the verdict, the officer in charge of the case, DC Elianne Jones, said the conviction closed a three-and-a-half year complex investigation, and that bringing the three cases together strengthened the case.
“All three victims in this case came forward separately, but after recognising similarities with a case that Bester was convicted for in 2023,” she said.
“This was an act of real courage for the victims to come forward and has been vital in securing justice for them.”
She praised their bravery and resilience and added: “We will continue to pursue sexual offenders regardless of how much time has passed and we encourage anyone who is affected t seek support and report the abuse.
“We will always be there to listen.”
