Paedophile handed 13 life sentences for abuse of children in UK and abroad
A paedophile will probably die in jail after being handed 13 life sentences for the “horrific” abuse of children in Britain and abroad amid fears the full scale of his crimes has yet to emerge.
Retired English teacher Mark Frost, formerly known as Andrew Tracey, 70, admitted 45 sex offences against nine children in Thailand between 2009 and 2012 and two UK pupils in the 1990s.
Frost was sentenced by Judge Mark Lucraft QC to serve a minimum of 16 years for each life sentence plus concurrent terms of five and 10 years for lesser offences.
The judge told Frost he was responsible for “the most appalling catalogue of sexual abuse” and it was clear he had an “ongoing obsession” with young boys.
He said: “Your conduct towards each and every one of these victims is horrific and deeply disturbing.”
Over three years in the 1990s, unmarried Frost had sex with two pupils at a school in Worcestershire, even abusing one of them in front of his adopted son. One of the victims has died since coming forward.
Frost had sex with his late victim in a school store room, during breaks, and videoed him at his home, leaving him in “constant fear” of exposure.
The other vulnerable victim said he had sex at Frost’s home, in a barn and during a camping holiday in Wales and was left “scared and embarrassed”.
The now-adult man told police he was rewarded with cigarettes, money and “nice things”.
The court heard how Frost went on to rape impoverished Asian boys and encouraged them to engage in sex acts after he groomed them with cash, sweets, computer games and swims in his pool.
He used violence to “control” his victims and on one occasion, he dragged a boy out of a car with a belt around his neck and threatened to throw him down a well.
He skipped bail to avoid prosecution in Thailand but was extradited from Spain last year after his activities were uncovered by Dutch police on the computer of a man in the Netherlands.
Frost got the boys aged between 10 and 14 to give thumbs-up signs and make love heart gestures with their hands while being filmed in sexual acts on webcam.
The Asian boys’ mothers expressed their “sorrow” at finding out the man they regarded as a “kind and generous foreigner” had taken advantage of their children.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) believes Frost may have assaulted many more youngsters he had contact with through his 25-year career in schools in east London, Hertfordshire and Worcestershire and as a senior Scouts volunteer.
Over 30 years, Frost fell under the radar of police and became skilful at avoiding detection by moving as soon as he came under suspicion.
He was finally brought to justice through an investigation involving the NCA and authorities in Thailand, the Netherlands and Spain.
In 1978, he subscribed to the Paedophile Information Exchange (PIE), an international organisation of people who traded obscene material.
In 1986, the unmarried teacher tried to adopt a son through the Catholic Church and was turned down, only to succeed through a local authority, the NCA said. The pair are now estranged.
In 1992, he was fined for possessing indecent photographs of a child and the following year was jailed for a year for allowing his premises to be used for drugs and sex with an under-age girl.
Three years later he was banned from teaching by the Department for Education.
In 1998, he was jailed for a year for indecent assault on a male under 16 and put on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years.
Once he was taken off the register, he moved to Thailand.
NCA senior investigating officer Matt Sutton said the 13 life sentences reflected the seriousness of Frost’s crimes.
He said: “It sends a message to others who think they can sexually abuse children anywhere in the world under the radar of UK law enforcement.”
Ruona Iguyovwe, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “The harrowing evidence presented by the prosecution in this case outlined the suffering that Mark Frost caused to his victims.
“Over many years, Frost repeatedly exploited vulnerable young victims, both in the UK and in Thailand, for his own sexual gratification.
“His offending has caused severe psychological harm to all of the children he abused, many of whom are now old enough to realise the enormity of what happened to them.”
An NSPCC spokesman said: “Mark Frost’s vile campaign of sickening child abuse spanned over quarter of a century in the UK and abroad, and today’s sentence will likely see him spending the rest of his days behind bars.
“Frost was a prolific and dangerous paedophile who worked as a teacher and Scout leader for decades. We hope that anyone who suffered can now find the courage to speak out.”
The NCA and NSPCC have set up a helpline for other victims to come forward, on 0800 328 0904.
Copyright (c) Press Association Ltd. 2017, All Rights Reserved. Picture (c) NCA / PA Wire.
