‘Hero’ karate champion found guilty of sexual assaults on teenage boys

By Eleanor Barlow and Kim Pilling, Reporters22nd March 2024News EnglandChild Abuse, Courts / Justice, Liverpool, News England, Non-Recent / Historic Abuse, North West, Sexual Abuse

A karate champion regarded as a “hero” by his students has been found guilty of sexual assaults on teenage boys.

Andrew Sherry, a founder member of the Karate Union of Great Britain (KUGB), was accused of indecently assaulting one boy, under the age of 16, in the mid-1980s, and of four counts of sexual assaults on an older teenager in 2011 or 2012.

A trial at Liverpool Crown Court also heard he had allegedly propositioned two other male students in the 1990s.

On Friday, the 80-year-old (pictured) was unanimously found guilty by a jury of all five counts.

The trial heard Sherry, a ninth dan black belt, founded the Red Triangle karate club in Everton, Liverpool, and achieved “prominence and standing” in the sport, before he retired in March 2022 after a police investigation was launched.

His defence barrister claimed the allegations were the result of a conspiracy by other practitioners who wanted to “overthrow their leader”.

One complainant said he had given up a promising career in karate as a result of Sherry.

He said the sensei had asked him for “special favours” when he was aged between 12 and 16, in the mid-1980s.

He said Sherry had wrestled with him while at his bungalow in West Derby, Liverpool, and he could tell he was “aroused”.

His instructor had then taken him to Knowsley Safari Park where he spoke about monkeys having sex, he said.

The man, who said he was groomed by Sherry, told the court: “He said ‘I’ll give you money, you’ll come to all the sporting events with me, you’ll stay with me, you won’t want for nothing, any clothes you want, anything you want. I’ll teach you how to become the best’.”

Under cross-examination by Tania Griffiths KC, defending, he denied his aim was to “bring down the KUGB” and that he was working in collusion with others.

The second complainant, who was 18 at the time of the assaults, said Sherry massaged him on the buttocks and kissed him on the lips on more than one occasion.

He described Sherry asking if he could “hold” him and putting his arms around him.

The man said: “I accepted this because Andrew Sherry was my instructor and it was a case of if he said ‘jump’, I said ‘how high?’”

He also said on one occasion Sherry asked if he wanted to join him in the bedroom and was “visibly disappointed” when they did not have sex.

Two other men, who Sherry was not charged with offences against, claimed he had propositioned them in the 1990s.

One of them told the court: “He was an inspirational teacher to me. He was my hero.”

Sherry was granted bail as he was told he will be sentenced on May 1.

Adjourning the case for a pre-sentence report, Judge David Swinnerton told him: “I have heard quite a lot about your karate career but I need to get more background information about you.”