Former sports coach jailed for 30 years for historic sex offences

A man who ‘grossly abused his position of trust’ as a sports coach, sexually abusing five teenage boys, has been found guilty of a catalogue of historic sexual offences and jailed for 30-years.

Earlier this year, Dylan Lamb, formerly known as Johnathan Haythorne and Jonathan Haythorne Price, was charged with a number of sexual offences, committed in Rotherham, Doncaster and Brigg in the 1970s, 80s, 90s and early 2000, against five victims. At the time of the offences, Lamb was employed as a football coach in South Yorkshire and later as a hockey coach in North Lincolnshire.

Lamb’s offending came to light when one of his victims spoke to police, as Detective Constable Kath Coulter who led the investigation, explained.

“In October 2016, the first victim we spoke to, who is now an adult, came forward to report the abuse Lamb had subjected him to after seeing media coverage about a high profile child sex abuse case that had been publicised by the Football Association.

“The abuse began when the victim was just 13, when Lamb, who was known as Haythorne at the time, was working as a football coach in Swinton and living in Mexborough.

“Over the course of five years Lamb abused the boy, with the abuse reportedly getting less frequent as he got older.

“As our inquiry progressed, and we made efforts to find and arrest Haythorne, we discovered that he had changed his name to Dylan Lamb and had recently been working as a hockey coach at a club near to Brigg, North Lincolnshire.

“It was here that a second victim came forward to report abuse at the hands of Lamb. He was 15 at the time and played at the hockey club where Lamb worked.

“After initially charging Lamb with some offences earlier this year, a further three victims came forward, reporting that Lamb had abused them too, having met him in his role as a sports coach.

“Some of the victims reported that Lamb used to buy them meals, birthday presents and arrange group trips where they would stay overnight, such as camping.

“Lamb often used to invite them to stay with him either at his house, or in a hotel. It was through these events, and inviting them to places where he could be alone with them that Lamb grossly abused his position of trust and subjected the boys to horrific abuse.”

Lamb, 72, of Queens Court, Scawby, North Lincolnshire, has been on trial at Sheffield Crown Court for the past 13 days and was yesterday, Wednesday 4 December found guilty of the following offences; eleven counts of indecent assault, five counts of indecency with a child and five counts of other additional sexual offences. The victims were all aged between 13 and 17, or below, when the abuse occurred.

After the jury found him guilty, he was sentenced to 30-years in prison.

DC Coulter added: “The horrific, sustained abuse that Lamb subjected the boys to has had a profound impact on them and first and foremost I’d like to praise their bravery in coming forward and speaking to police about what happened.

“The five survivors, now all adults, have been forced to recount the abuse in detail through a trial and they have all shown immense courage in standing up to Lamb once again and telling the court what happened to them.

“I hope that knowing he has been found guilty and is now facing what could potentially be the rest of his life behind bars offers them some comfort.

“Lamb was in a position of trust, and he abused that in the most horrific way possible. He made the victims feel as though no one would believe them, that he, as a sports coach, would be the one people would listen to.

“Even years later, when a victim saw Lamb in a social situation he froze and said it brought him right back to the abuse, showing the devastating impact Lamb has had.

“The survivors, in their own words have spoken about the impact Lamb’s offending had on them, with one saying he suffers from ‘very vivid flashbacks’ and is unable to sleep. Another has spoken of the dark times he went through but that now, following the court case ‘there is some sunlight breaking through.’

“As a result of their courage in speaking out, and supporting the police investigation, Lamb will now be held to account.

“This is one of the important reasons why we share these charges, convictions and subsequent sentences, we want to give victims the confidence to come forward and report offences and know that we are here to listen, to be objective, and to bring offenders before the courts to face the consequences for what they have done.”