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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
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| Nursery worker admits sex abuse | Nursery worker admits sex abuse |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| A Plymouth nursery worker and her two co-defendants have pleaded guilty to a number of charges relating to sexual assaults against young children. | A Plymouth nursery worker and her two co-defendants have pleaded guilty to a number of charges relating to sexual assaults against young children. |
| Vanessa George, 39, Angela Allen, 39, from Nottingham and Colin Blanchard, 39, from Rochdale, appeared at Bristol Crown Court, having never met before. | Vanessa George, 39, Angela Allen, 39, from Nottingham and Colin Blanchard, 39, from Rochdale, appeared at Bristol Crown Court, having never met before. |
| The three admitted 37 of 38 counts of sexual assault and distributing indecent images of children. | The three admitted 37 of 38 counts of sexual assault and distributing indecent images of children. |
| Abuse was recorded on mobile phones and images exchanged via e-mail and text. | Abuse was recorded on mobile phones and images exchanged via e-mail and text. |
| Detective Superintendent Adrian Pearson said: "Those three individuals have shared quite willingly and freely images, texts, fantasies of the most serious level you could imagine." | Detective Superintendent Adrian Pearson said: "Those three individuals have shared quite willingly and freely images, texts, fantasies of the most serious level you could imagine." |
| The identities of the children who were abused are unknown. | |
| Wept in court | Wept in court |
| The public gallery was packed with about 30 parents who wept as the guilty pleas were entered. | The public gallery was packed with about 30 parents who wept as the guilty pleas were entered. |
| One man pointed at Blanchard and was asked to calm himself by the usher. Allen wept as she pleaded guilty while Blanchard showed no reaction and George hung her head in the dock. | One man pointed at Blanchard and was asked to calm himself by the usher. Allen wept as she pleaded guilty while Blanchard showed no reaction and George hung her head in the dock. |
| The probability I would have to say is very low that we will identify any of these children Detective Inspector Costa Nassaris Chilling bond between abusers | |
| The abuse began in September last year and they were arrested in June following a police investigation. | The abuse began in September last year and they were arrested in June following a police investigation. |
| George, who worked at Little Ted's nursery in the Efford area of Plymouth, pleaded guilty to 13 charges including sexual abuse of children and making and distributing indecent images of children. | George, who worked at Little Ted's nursery in the Efford area of Plymouth, pleaded guilty to 13 charges including sexual abuse of children and making and distributing indecent images of children. |
| She pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual assault which was ordered by the judge to lie on file. | She pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual assault which was ordered by the judge to lie on file. |
| Her arrest sparked massive public outrage and angry scenes during earlier court appearances. | |
| Allen, of Nine Acre Gardens, Nottingham, admitted five counts of sexual assault and distributing indecent images of children. | Allen, of Nine Acre Gardens, Nottingham, admitted five counts of sexual assault and distributing indecent images of children. |
| Website contact | Website contact |
| IT worker Blanchard, of Yea Fold, Smallbridge, near Rochdale admitted 19 counts of sexual assault and distributing indecent images of children. | IT worker Blanchard, of Yea Fold, Smallbridge, near Rochdale admitted 19 counts of sexual assault and distributing indecent images of children. |
| The three are believed to have met on the social networking website, Facebook, and had not met in person. | The three are believed to have met on the social networking website, Facebook, and had not met in person. |
| They exchanged thousands of e-mail and text messages between them containing images of child abuse, the court heard. | They exchanged thousands of e-mail and text messages between them containing images of child abuse, the court heard. |
| Blanchard was arrested on 6 June after one of his colleagues found obscene pictures on a work computer. | |
| Examination of his laptop computer led to the arrests of George and Allen. | Examination of his laptop computer led to the arrests of George and Allen. |
| No-one else is believed to have been involved. Sentencing is expected to take place several weeks' time. | No-one else is believed to have been involved. Sentencing is expected to take place several weeks' time. |
| Detective Inspector Costa Nassaris, of Devon and Cornwall Police public protection unit, said: "No individual child has been identified from the images, and that's down to the nature of the images themselves. | |
| "Work is ongoing, we've not given up on that but the probability I would have to say is very low that we will identify any of these children." |