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Criminal cases that the Crown Prosecution Service take to court are in the news every day. This section also covers many issues related to our work, including violence against women and girls, hate crime, support for victims and witnesses, statistics, and speeches by the Director of Public Prosecutions and other senior staff.

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You can find our latest news stories here and search for older stories. You can also find more information about high-profile cases and the work of the CPS.

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To make criminal court reporting more open, the CPS, police, and media representatives created a joint protocol (agreement) for working together. We are currently working on an updated version of the protocol. 

Showing 81 - 90 of 136 results for crime type "Sexual offences" & area "CPS"

Date format: mm/dd/yyyy
Date format: mm/dd/yyyy

Serious sex offender who used false identities to blackmail women and children online jailed

A man who blackmailed women and children into engaging in degrading sexual acts has today been jailed.Anthony Burns (AKA Danny Burns), 39, has been sentenced to 24 years imprisonment plus a five-year extended licence for 41 offences including blackmail, causing a child to engage in sexual activity,…
Press Release Sexual offences International and organised crime CPS

Q2 CPS data shows a continued increase in the number of suspects charged in rape-flagged cases 

Between July and September last year, there was a 11.5% increase in the number of suspects charged in adult rape-flagged cases from 599 in Q1 23/24 to 668 in Q2 23/24. According to the Q2 data released today there has been an increase in adult rape flagged charges of 163% since January…
Press Release Sexual offences CPS

Convicted sex offender jailed two more years for assaulting teenage girl

A sex offender who assaulted a teenage girl after stealing her phone from her has been jailed for two more years. The CPS prosecuted Ishtiaq Khaliq, 40, after an investigation by officers from the National Crime Agency’s Operation Stovewood, which is looking into allegations of non-familial…
Press Release Sexual offences International and organised crime CPS

Rapist who targeted sleeping passenger on London Underground service jailed for 14 years

A dangerous predator who raped a sleeping passenger on a London Underground service has been jailed for 14 years. Ryan Johnston, 37, launched his attack after targeting the woman who was returning home from an evening out with friends in February 2020. He approached the victim, who was…
Press Release Sexual offences CPS West Midlands

Man who posed as model agency scout to blackmail children into sending him indecent images jailed

A man who blackmailed children into sending him indecent images of themselves over social media has today been jailed. Ishmael Lance Duncan, 24, was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment plus a six-year extended licence at Inner London Crown Court on 1 December 2023 after he pleaded guilty to a…
Press Release Sexual offences International and organised crime CPS

Q1 CPS data shows a continued increase in the number of suspects charged in rape flagged cases

Between April and June this year, there was a 9.4% increase in the number of suspects charged in adult rape flagged cases from 859 in Q4 22/23 to 940 in Q1 23/24. According to the Q1 data released today there has been an increase in adult rape flagged charges of 136% since January 2021. There…
Press Release Sexual offences CPS

Child sexual abuse victims urged to contact panel

“I contacted the panel and got a response really quickly. It was such a relief to feel that someone was listening and taking my enquiry seriously.” Victims and survivors of child sexual abuse are being urged to contact a scheme which helps to achieve the justice they deserve during a month-long…
Press Release Sexual offences CPS

Victims Summit 2023 - speech by Max Hill KC, Director of Public Prosecutions

N.B. - there is some minor variation in this speech between as written and as delivered. I would like to thank Claire Waxman for inviting me here today to share some of the work we are undertaking at the CPS to improve our service to victims. Victims deserve, and rightly expect, to be…
Speech Sexual offences CPS

CPS publishes latest quarterly statistics which show a continued increase in people charged with rape

Today the CPS has published the Q2 performance data which covers the three-month period from 1 July to 30 September 2022. Notable changes in the data from Q1 2022-23 to Q2 2022-23 include: The volume of suspects charged with rape has increased 13.7% from 666 in Q1 to 757 in Q2…
Press Release Sexual offences Domestic abuse Hate crime CPS

Children are often present during non-fatal strangulation, CPS analysis shows

Children were present in more than a third of non-fatal strangulation offences, according to analysis of a sample of cases by the Crown Prosecution Service. Prosecutors were given additional powers to charge violent abusers with non-fatal strangulation and non-fatal suffocation in June when new…
Press Release Sexual offences CPS

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Media protocol

To ensure greater openness in the reporting of criminal proceedings, the CPS, the police and media representatives developed a joint protocol for working together. We are currently in the process of updating the protocol.

Read the current protocol

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