A PAEDOPHILE’S first victim who remained silent for more than 20 years before stumbling upon his name on a court list having committed a string of similar offences has spoken out - after he was jailed for almost a decade.

Kevin Egley, from Dodworth, was convicted of multiple charges relating to grooming and sexual assault involving three victims known as Girl A, Girl B and Girl C.

The 67-year-old’s offences began in the early 2000s when he targeted Girl A, who lived on the same street, but it wasn’t until a miraculous twist of fate that she felt able to report her ordeal to South Yorkshire Police.

Having been set to visit Sheffield Crown Court for a different case, Girl A - now aged 38 - happened to see Egley’s name on a listings website and found out that he had been charged for sexual-related offences against two youngsters, Girl B and Girl C.

She told the Chronicle: “It was bizarre synchronicity - I was due to attend court to watch another completely unrelated case and as I live almost 200 miles away now, I viewed the listings site to double check before travelling and booking my hotel.

“I saw his name on the list - I read this name over and over on the page as the pit of my stomach churned, and when I saw the charges, I knew instantly it was him.

“Every hair on my body stood on end.

“It was a one in a billion chance I was presented with, such a strange turn of events, but I decided to come forward and was interviewed by the police.

“He denied all knowledge of knowing me at first, but having been charged, he then pleaded guilty to the offences which involved me.

“He issued not guilty pleas relating to Girl B and Girl C, which meant they had to go to a trial.”

Describing how Egley preyed on her for several years from when she was just 13, Girl A said the street was a close-knit community and everyone helped each other get by.

Egley, who lived with his brother, had a pet dog which Girl A regularly walked and enjoyed seeing.

However, Egley’s behaviour became more sinister when he began taking Girl A out for food and his advances began to become more frequent.

“I was adopted which comes with a whole heap of complexities and its own lifetime of trauma, so I never spoke out to anyone about what was going on,” she added.

“I felt if I told anyone about what was happening, I’d be sent back or be accused of lying.

“The emotional safety net was not there.

“It was heartbreaking for me, but I was effectively hand-picked as I was vulnerable.’

“I didn’t have much then and given how people on our street helped with everything, I was manipulated by him and saw him as being kind, when in reality he knew exactly what he was doing.”

Girl A - who was picked up from Barnsley town centre by Egley following a gathering with her friends when she was 15 - bravely told him to stop when his actions became more forceful.

However, it wasn’t until last year when she chose to speak out having been inspired to help his two other victims, who are also from Barnsley.

Egley was found guilty of five sexual offences against Girl B and Girl C, consisting of five counts of assaulting a girl under 13 by touching.

He admitted three counts of indecent assault on a girl under 16 years in relation to Girl A and was jailed for nine-and-a-half years.

“I’d sat on this information for so long, and it is something I would have taken to my grave,” she said.

“But after seeing his name on the court list, I could no longer ignore what happened to me.

“It had been put in my path for a reason.

“I just had to help - I had to get justice, not just for me, but the other victims too.

“The sentencing hearing was extremely distressing for me - I had my husband on my right and the police officer who helped with my case to my left, I was well supported but I just violently shook.

“My body was reacting involuntarily to having to revisit the trauma.

“I don’t know if that was adrenaline or shock.

“It was harrowing, completely surreal - I just could not believe that this man had committed the offences against me more than two decades ago, had done the very same things all those years later.

“I spoke out as the cycle had to end - having to revisit something that happened to me 25 years ago was incredibly difficult.

“Egley is a groomer, a predator whose behaviour went unnoticed for so long until the girls bravely spoke out but these people do not take a 20-year hiatus before they strike again.

“What has happened to me has made me feel flawed as a person, and contributed to a snowball trauma in my adult life.

“I feel robbed in so many ways, and forever will have to live with the mental damage and the daily effects this has on me as a person and in my relationships, but I feel the sentence means I can now close the chapter and I am validated.”