July 29, 2016 3.02 pm This story is over 91 months old

Lincolnshire children charged with raping seven boys and girls under 13

Lincolnshire Police have charged seven people under the age of consent with the rape of boys and girls below the age of 13 since January 2015. Figures from a Freedom of Information request to Lincolnshire Police have revealed that 19 children under the age of 16 have been charged by the force with sex offences…

Lincolnshire Police have charged seven people under the age of consent with the rape of boys and girls below the age of 13 since January 2015.

Figures from a Freedom of Information request to Lincolnshire Police have revealed that 19 children under the age of 16 have been charged by the force with sex offences since January 1 last year.

Four children have been charged with the rape of a girl under 13, with three more charged for the same offence on a boy.

Other sexual offences included on the list are attempted rape, sexual assault, assault by touching, and causing or inciting an underage girl to engage in sexual activity.

These worrying figures come after The Lincolnite reported in June that nearly 50 crimes were committed by children under the age of 10 in Lincolnshire in the last two years.

Crimes perpetrated by the children included the rape of a boy under the age of 13, and assaults on a girl under 13 by touching.

One child was also found to have possessed indecent images of a child and, on one occasion, to have taken such a picture.

Another offender was caught trying to incite sexual activity with a girl under 13, who was a member of his or her family.

A similar case was reported the following year, with the victim this time being a boy under the age of 13.

A spokesperson for the force said: “Lincolnshire Police has teams of specialist officers, who are highly trained to deal with the very complex circumstances that generally surround offences of this nature.”