A millionaire philanthropist led a double life as a sex predator who drugged teenagers and young men, court hears
- Ian Elliott, a retired businessman, has been sentenced to 18 years in jail for sex crimes.
- The English millionaire was convicted of abusing six victims between 1991 and 2021.
Ian Elliott was a respected philanthropist in England until his history of predatory crimes was uncovered, per a police court report.
On Thursday, February 22, the retired businessman was sentenced to 18 years in prison at Hove Crown Court in Sussex for sex crimes spanning four decades.
The 71-year-old was convicted of abusing six victims in West Sussex between 1991 and 2021.
The millionaire, once considered a "pillar'" of the Wisborough Green community in West Sussex, led a double life as a depraved sex offender.
Elliott, who funded local sports clubs and a cricket pavilion, made his fortune building an office supplies company, said The Times of London. The business was valued at $3.8 million when it was sold in 2019.
He used gifts of money, foreign holidays and trips in his helicopter and onboard his boat to groom his victims, said The Times.
The Hove Trial Centre's Crown Court sentencing report said that Elliott pleaded guilty to rape, attempted rape, sexual assault, voyeurism, possession of Class A, Class B, and Class C drugs, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and perverting the course of justice committed against four male victims, aged between 16-years-old and 28-years old.
Detective Superintendent Miles Ockwell, head of Sussex Police's Safeguarding Investigations Units, said Elliott hid "behind the façade of a trustworthy pillar of his local community" to carry out "his relentless campaign of sexual abuse."
Elliott's reputation was shattered when police unearthed hours of disturbing videos showing his predatory acts against teenagers and young men.
'Everyone says I'm brave, but I'm still embarrassed'
Elliott liked to refer to himself as "Boss," said police.
Victims, some unaware of the crimes committed against them until contacted by authorities, described Elliott as a monster who preyed on their vulnerabilities. Elliott's criminal activities went unchecked until a victim stepped forward, leading to the discovery of the incriminating evidence.The ensuing trial uncovered the extent of his crimes, with over 90 hours of video footage and hundreds of thousands of images revealing the depths of his depravity. Descriptions of the videos, too disturbing to play in open court, revealed scenes of violent sexual abuse and rape, often involving dressing his victims in riding boots, straps, and a wetsuit, the court heard.Elliott groomed victims with lavish gifts, exotic holidays, and rides on his helicopter and boat, only to subject them to degradation and abuse behind closed doors.His victims were left physically and psychologically scarred by his "horrendous abuse," said Detective Superintendent Ockwell.