Lindy Leah, 44, claimed she had “fallen in love” with the vulnerable teen who was a resident at the home where she worked
Lindy Leah, of Capesthorne Road in Orford, Warrington(Image: Merseyside Police)
A married mum who preyed on a vulnerable young boy at the care home where she worked showed no emotion as her victim’s mum broke down in tears. Lindy Leah was said to have “fallen in love with” the teenager, who was a resident of the home in St Helens where she was employed as a deputy manager.
The 44-year-old was accused of wearing inappropriate and revealing outfits in his presence. A series of WhatsApp messages meanwhile showed her apparently asking him “for a love bite” and encouraging him to go missing so they could enjoy a drug-fuelled “night away”.
Leah, of Capesthorne Road in Orford, Warrington, denied being a person in a position of trust causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity. However, she was found guilty following a trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.
She also pleaded guilty to two counts of being concerned in the supply of class B drugs after text messages discussing the sales of cannabis resin and ketamine were found on her phone. She appeared back in court today, September 15, for sentence via a video link to HMP Styal.
Prosecutor Graham Pickavance said: “This was a very serious and sustained breach of trust over many months. Aggravating factors include the location of the offence. This was a damaged child in care and the defendant was employed to care for and protect him.”
He added: “To ask him to go ‘missing from care’ to go and spent a night together with her in ‘silky and red’, together with ‘balloons and flake’ which is code for drugs, it’s not just a simple matter of a kiss and a cuddle. It shows there was going to be a proper, full relationship.”
In a tearful statement, the victim’s mum said: “I can’t begin to describe the devastation that has rocked my family from the moment we found out what had been happening to my son. Shock, anger, betrayal and feelings and failure have plagued me for the past year. But it isn’t about me.”
She described how she had allowed her son to go into care as she believed he would be safe, adding: “I couldn’t give him the care he needed, so I handed over one of the most important persons in my life to people I thought would help him. It was not an easy decision, it was the hardest decision in my life. But knowing my son still had a family who loved him, I hoped he could move into a more positive place with the help of professionals who knew how to deal with a child like him.
“This is where the feelings of being a failure and guilt comes in. I had unintentionally handed my son to a predator.
“Lindy Leah said she loved my son. Predators do not look for love, they look to manipulate and control. She found a vulnerable young boy who was angry at the world and hurting from being what he thought was cast out from his immediate family. She even had the audacity to stand in the box and say no one cared for or loved him. This couldn’t be further from the truth
“She groomed him with attention, money, gifts, and she became his accomplice. She built a toxic trust so when he broke the rules and carried on down that dangerous path, she actively encouraged him by covering up for him.
“She isolated him from his family. She downplayed his destructive, criminal behaviour while spoiling him with money and fake love. She did this so she could control him. She would manipulate him, take his phone from him in jealousy as a means to bribe him.
“It’s sickening how someone in her position can abuse someone so vulnerable. I spoke in my witness statement of how jealous [I was] of the relationship she had with my son. Now I’m just filled with rage at her and myself at not seeing through her.
“There’s no closure to be had. No sentence great enough to compensate for the hurt, damage and destruction she has wrought on my son and our family.
“My son is coming to terms with the fact that the relationship with Lindy Leah was wrong. All I can do now as his mum is be there for him.”
Addressing Leah, she added: “You stood there saying over and over again that you were my son’s mother. What kind of mother would do that to a child? You’re not his mother, I am and always will be.”
Leah showed no emotion throughout. Rebecca Filletti, defending, said the 44-year-old had “mental health difficulties in respect of anxiety and depression following the loss of her father, and a physical ailment requiring treatment”.
She said: “I in no way wish to undermine the nature of the offence of which she has been found guilty Although it’s clear from the mitigation documents that there’s an element of acceptance. She is ashamed about her behaviour more broadly, she acknowledges the impact on all involved including the victim as well as her own family.
“There are indications this is a lady who has been affected by her time in custody, has certainly learned from that, and she’s indicated a desire that she wants to provided contribute to society moving forward.”
Leah was sentenced to 15 months in prison for being a person in a position of trust inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, and eight months for being concerned in the supply of class B drugs, making a total of 23 months.
She was also given a 10-year restraining order banning her from contacting the victim and his mum, and a 10-year sexual harm prevention order (SHPO).