A transgender woman who committed a string of sexual assaults on girls as young as four over a 17-year period has been jailed for 22 years.
Jessica Brennan, known as Allan Brennan at the time of the offences, groomed then sexually abused the four children between 1998 and 2016.
The 54-year-old tried to rape one of the children and another girl was subjected to systematic abuse over the course of a decade, which involved ‘multiple’ incidents.
York Crown Court heard the victims, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were haunted by the abuse and their lives had been ‘ruined’ by the paedophile.
Brennan, from Harrogate, North Yorkshire, was convicted of attempted rape of a child under 13, assault of a girl under 13 by penetration, five counts of sexual activity with a child, assault by penetration, two counts of sexual assault, sexual activity with a child, and five counts of indecent assault.
The Ministry of Justice would not reveal which prison Brennan will be sent to following her sentencing, though she was in male-only HMP Hull prior to her court appearance.
Under UK law, transgender people are initially sent to prisons based on their legal status – but can request a transfer.
Prosecutors told the court one of the victims came forward to police with allegations against Brennan as early as 2000 but no charges were brought.
Jessica Brennan groomed then sexually assaulted the children, one of whom was just four years old, for nearly two decades from the late 1990s
The court heard the allegations re-emerged three to four years ago, when the abuse finally stopped and other girls came forward.
Brennan, who was listed as Allan Brennan by the court but identifies as Jessica, was charged with a raft of sexual offences.
One of the victims said she had suffered anxiety attacks since the abuse and had been taking anti-depressants as a result. She had been unable to form proper relationships and felt inexplicable guilt, the court was told.
Another victim had been having counselling sessions due to anxiety after losing her ‘self-worth and self-esteem’.
In a statement, the victim told the court: ‘It’s made it hard for me to trust people
‘This has affected my family. Anything that this evil man gets won’t be enough for what he’s done to me and my family.’
Another victim spoke of her ‘pain and suffering over the last 21 years’.
She said: ‘I was sexually abused when I was four. I had minimum understanding of what was happening to me. The comprehension of what happened to me as a child makes me sick to my stomach.
‘I’m constantly haunted by what happened to me.’
She said she got flashbacks to the abuse and was put on anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medication for panic attacks.
York Crown Court heard the victims, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were haunted by the abuse and their lives had been ‘ruined’ by it
The woman added: ‘At 12, I was taking medication I didn’t even understand.
‘It didn’t stop what happened ruining my life. It has affected every aspect of my life [including] forming a relationship with boys.
‘I felt like my body was not my own. There just doesn’t seem to be any aspect of what happened to me that doesn’t live with me to this day.’
The victim said the abuse had affected her education and her work and left her with a ‘pit of depression’. She had to take time off work due to anxiety attacks, which meant she had lost out financially too.
She added: ‘My life was stolen from me when I was just four years old. I was abused and violated by an adult.’
The fourth victim, a ‘vulnerable child’, said she ‘always felt [the abuse] was my fault’. She too was signed off work last year for anxiety and depression.
Brennan was charged with 16 separate offences including sexual assault of a child, indecent assault, sexual activity with a child and one count of attempted rape of a girl under 13.
She was found guilty after a trial earlier this year and appeared for sentence via video link on Monday, May 1. Three other allegations of sexual abuse were ‘severed’ and not-guilty verdicts recorded.
Gillian Batts, for Brennan, said her client, who has been remanded in jail since the trial, had no previous convictions.
Judge Simon Hickey excoriated Brennan for her chronic abuse of the children, who were aged from four to their teens.
He said: ‘You attacked four separate young girls over [a] 17-year period.
‘You are in my mind a dangerous offender [and] there is a risk of you causing [further] serious harm to young females.’
He told Brennan: ‘You chose to hide behind these offences, claiming you had no memory [beyond] a few years ago.’
As well as a custodial sentence, Brennan was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order which will run for an indefinite period and limit her contact with children.