Overview
- St Albans Crown Court sentenced the 54-year-old, tried under his birth name John Shannon, to immediate custody with release on licence after serving up to two thirds.
- Recorder Caroline Overton issued a restraining order and a sexual harm prevention order that requires lifelong notification of address and name changes.
- The offences occurred during an April 2022 sleepover in Hoddesdon after he supplied alcohol to the girls, with intercourse with a 14-year-old and sexual assault of a 15-year-old.
- Victim impact statements detailed ongoing trauma, including years of self-harm and a suicide attempt at age 16 by the older girl.
- Alford denied the allegations as a set-up and highlighted a lack of DNA evidence, but a jury convicted him on six counts after a week-long trial.