Phillip Schofield’s paedophile brother jailed for child sex offences
Timothy Schofield is jailed after being found guilty of 11 sexual offences involving a child
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Phillip Schofield’s paedophile brother has been jailed for 12 years after being found guilty of multiple child sex offences spanning a four-year period.
Schofield, who has been disowned by his This Morning host sibling, was convicted of 11 sexual offences involving a child between October 2016 and October 2019, including two of sexual activity with a child.
The victim, who alleged the offending started when he was 13, told the jury he felt “emotionally blackmailed” by Schofield, 54, and “forced” to participate in sexual activity.
Schofield, wearing a grey prison tracksuit, appeared in the dock at Bristol Crown Court on Friday morning for sentencing.
Jailing Schofield, Mrs Justice Johannah Cutts told him he had exploited his victim’s innocence “for your own sexual gratification” and that what he did was “wrong on every level”.
In a statement read to the court by Robin Shellard, prosecuting, the victim said he felt "numb to life" following the abuse.
It was only after Schofield, a civilian police worker from Bath, Somerset was arrested that he was able to feel “free” and “safe”, he added.
Speaking outside court following the sentence Keith Smith, detective inspector of Avon and Somerset Police, described the offending by Schofield as “sickening”.
Schofield was dismissed without notice from the force following a misconduct hearing held on 25 April. He will be placed on a national barred list preventing him from working in law enforcement again.
Mr Smith also said the boy abused by Schofield showed “remarkable bravery” and he hoped this would encourage other victims of sexual offences to come forward.
TV star Phillip Schofield earlier said “I no longer have a brother” after his sibling was found guilty in April following a trial at Exeter Crown Court.
Schofield admitted masturbating to pornography while sitting next to a boy who he claimed was over the age of 16 at the time.
He denied performing sexual acts on the teenager but was found guilty on all counts with a majority of 10-2 after more than five-and-a-half hours of deliberation.
During the trial, jurors heard how Schofield told his elder brother in September 2021 that he and the complainant had watched pornography together.
In a written statement read out in court, Phillip said that his brother had phoned him in an agitated and upset state, so he had invited him to drive to his home in London.
The court heard they spent several hours talking, including eating a meal, before he went to do the washing up.
He told how his brother said: “You are going to hate me for what I am about to say”, with him assuring him there was nothing he could say that would do that.
Phillip said in the statement: “Then he said that he and (the boy) had time together and that last year they had watched porn ... and (masturbated)”.
“I turned and said, ‘What did you just say?’ He said it was last year and we were alone together. Tim said it was just this once. I told him it should never happen again. He then started to tell me about (the boy’s) body.
“I said, ‘F***, stop’. I shouted at Tim that he had to stop. I didn’t want to know any of the details but he made it sound like a one-off.
“I said, ‘I don’t want you to tell me any more’. I said, ‘You’ve got to stop, just never do it again. Regardless how that happened, it must never happen again’.”
On his return to This Morning on 17 April Phillip thanked viewers for their “kind messages and support” following his brother’s trial. Phillip had been off air from 27 March for two weeks due to a scheduled break for the Easter holidays.
In a statement released by his lawyer after the guilty verdict, the This Morning host said: “My overwhelming concern is and has always been for the wellbeing of the victim and his family. I hope that their privacy will now be respected.
“If any crime had ever been confessed to me by my brother, I would have acted immediately to protect the victim and their family.
“These are despicable crimes, and I welcome the guilty verdicts. As far as I am concerned, I no longer have a brother.”
Schofield was convicted of three counts of causing a child to watch sexual activity, three of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, three of causing a child to engage in sexual activity and two of sexual activity with a child.
Children’s charity NSPCC said the victim had shown “real courage” in coming forward and urged anyone who has experience abuse to contact them.
In her sentencing remarks, the judge added: "You took away his ability to be the teenager he should have been - carefree, relaxed, happy. It is clear to me that you became utterly obsessed with him.
“Your actions and behaviour have had a devastating impact on the boy. In doing what you did, you thought only of yourself. I have not heard a single word of remorse from you, only self-pity.”