4 men have pleaded guilty and been sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court for a total of 17 sexual offences on three teenaged boys from Tyneside.The court heard how Derek Marshall, 52, and his son, Graeme Marshall, 24, befriended the boys, aged between 13 and 16 years. The victims were then introduced to a 58-year-old man called Melling, from Middlesbrough, who had been living in Spain, and Paul Anthony Bures, 53, from Kent, both of whom were jailed indefinitely. The offences were committed at Melling’s villa in Torrevieja, and also at locations in the UK: Kent, London and Northumbria.Judge John Evans described the case as: “An altogether horrendous story. The psychological damage wrought upon the victims is perfectly evidential.”
The court heard how the Marshalls befriended the boys and introduced them to Melling who gained their trust by buying them gifts and taking them to football matches. The Marshalls convinced the boys’ parents they would look after them while on holiday at Melling’s Torrevieja villa. Police began investigating Melling when one of the victims’ fathers contacted them, but Melling, suspecting the authorities were on his trail, fled to Spain. He was eventually deported from Bulgaria, whilst trying to cross into Turkey, in July 2007.