A “committed and relentless” investigation into reports of sexual abuse of boys more than 40 years ago has resulted in a man being jailed.
At Inner London Crown Court on Monday, 10 July, Clive McCleester, 77 (05.08.45) of St Cross Road, Winchester was sentenced to eight years in jail and a further eight years on licence after he pleaded guilty to eight counts of indecent assault and two counts of gross indecency with a child, against two teenage boys.
Detective Sergeant Hannah Stewart, from the Met’s Central Specialist Crime, said: “This has been a long and arduous investigation with McCleester maintaining his innocence throughout. We are pleased he has finally admitted his guilt just three days before we were due to take him to trial to present our case.
“The initial victim survivor, having sadly passed away after giving police his evidence, was unable to hear the guilty verdict but his family represented him at court in his absence. The second victim survivor was also sexually abused and exploited by McCleester – a verger in his Cathedral. The impact to both at such a young age has been devastating. They have been extremely brave and shown tremendous strength and courage.
“The officers involved in this case have worked relentlessly and shown incredible commitment to securing these convictions. Both victim/families feel they have been failed by institutions that were supposed to protect them. We hope they can feel an element of peace knowing that justice has been finally served. McCleester is a vile predator who has no place in society.
“We urge anyone who has been a victim of McCleester to come forward to police. We will support you.”
At the time of one of the offences McCleester was employed as a child welfare officer at Tylney Hall School in Hampshire, between 1960 and 1971.
The first victim was aged between 13 to 15-years-old at the time of the offences. McCleester resided at the boarding school in his own private residence and was assigned as a welfare officer to look after the victim following the death of his Grandmother. The abuse took place between 1 January 1969 and April 1971.
The victim survivor disclosed his abuse to police after speaking with a counsellor. Sadly he will never know the final outcome of this investigation as he died in August 2020. Detectives remained in contact with his family throughout.
Specialist Crime detectives launched an investigation.
A second victim survivor came forward to police and disclosed the abuse he had also suffered at the hands of McCleester. He was around 13-years-old when he was abused by McCleester at Southwark Cathedral between 1 January 1984 and May 1987. He was a chorister at the Cathedral where McCleester was the Head Verger. He was abused at McCleester’s flat which was within the vicarage.
Due to the time frame of the offences, specialist officers gathered and reviewed a vast amount of historical documentation to obtain the necessary evidence. They interrogated systems, old archived files and employment records from the local authority and Southwark Cathedral to trace individuals to assist with the investigation. Former pupils were traced and interviewed. They also obtained specialist medical reports to corroborate the two victim accounts.
The pandemic hindered the investigation due to archives being closed. In February 2022 McCleester was charged with the offences mentioned. An initial trial was set for October 2022 but was deferred to 26 June 2023, where he pleaded guilty.
Advice and details of charities that can offer support to victims of sexual offences can be found on the Met’s website. The Met has specially trained officers who will listen and support you through the investigative process.
