A serving police officer is facing a lengthy jail term after being found guilty of raping a child under the age of 13 and then wiping his phone to try to cover up his crime.
James Ford, 31 – who was suspended from Hertfordshire Police in November last year – was found guilty of 10 counts of sexual abuse against the same child.
The jury at Cambridge Crown Court took less than a day to reach its decision.
The defendant, formerly of Bishop’s Stortford, was found guilty of four counts of rape, four of sexual assault and two of causing or inciting a child under the age of 13 to engage in sexual activity.
He was also found guilty of carrying out an act tending and intended to pervert the course of public justice, in that he “deliberately wiped his phone by factory resetting his Samsung mobile phone”.
The offences were denied by the defendant, who served as an intervention officer, and happened between 2019 and 2021.
Judge Mr Justice Simon Bryan remanded Ford in custody ahead of sentencing on Friday.
Releasing jurors, he told them that Ford was “obviously going to have a lengthy custodial sentence – the sentence will be determined by me on Friday”.
Hertfordshire Police said that when allegations emerged, the case was independently investigated by specialist officers based within the Child Abuse Investigation and Safeguarding Unit (CAISU) at Cambridgeshire Police.
Assistant Chief Constable Genna Telfer said she was “disgusted by his actions” and “he will face a fast-track hearing for dismissal”.
Ford joined Hertfordshire Police in December 2019 and was originally based in East Hertfordshire as a uniformed response officer, the force said.
Detective Inspector Susie Hine, who heads CAISU at Cambridgeshire Police, paid tribute to the “courage and bravery” of the child.
“Through the victim’s powerful testimony, the jury were left in no doubt and now a predatory sex offender is behind bars,” she said.
“Cases of this nature are both disturbing and upsetting and I want to reassure the public, there is no place for an offender to hide no matter who they are.
“In this case, it was a serving police officer who now faces the custodial consequences of his appalling actions.”
Detective Constable Mark Williamson, the officer in the case, said: “Ford has shown no remorse for his actions and it’s a credit to the victim that the jury saw beyond his lies.
“Ford faces a significant prison sentence for his crimes which I hope gives a sense of justice to the victim and their family.”
