An 85-year-old man from Stevenage has been spared jail after he admitted indecently assaulting a boy in the 1980s.

Michael Shewan was given a nine month sentence – suspended for 18 months – at Cambridge Crown Court after pleading guilty to the offence on a boy under the age of 14 in Stevenage between December 1980 and December 1984.

Shewan – who was arrested in February 2014 and charged in January this year after an investigation by Herts police’s specialist Joint Child Protection Investigation Team – was also issued with a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and ordered to pay £1,000 costs at the hearing on Friday, October 23.

Det Con Clare Seal, who works on the investigation team, praised the victim for coming forward and urged others who have suffered in their childhood to do the same.

She said: “I would like to thank the victim for his courage in reporting this abuse to police.

“While Michael Shewan has been given a suspended sentence, he is being monitored under the order passed to him and any breaches will be dealt with robustly. I hope this brings some comfort to the victim, and for knowing his abuser pleaded guilty to this crime.

“This case shows that time is not a barrier to bringing offenders to justice that have harmed children and I would encourage anyone who has been a victim of these crimes, even if it was some time ago, to please contact police.”

You can contact the JCPIT via police non-emergency number 101.