Chesterfield woman jailed for sexually abusing young boy on three occasions

Adele Foster's victim - present as she was sentenced at Derby Crown Court - told the defendant "you have not broken me".

Derby Crown Court heard Foster was aged 17 at the time of the offences and her traumatised victim shared what happened to him with his GP years later.

A prosecutor described how he also confronted Foster at her address, recording the conversation on her phone when she told him: "I apologise from the bottom of my heart."

Addressing the court and Foster before she was sentenced, her victim said: "For years I tried to pretend nothing happened but what you have done affected me in so many ways.

"But you have not broken me - I'm stronger than you. I will be living my best life but you will be in prison."

Despite admitting the abuse to her victim, Foster waited until the last possible opportunity to plead guilty.

Her defence barrister said Foster suffered with an emotionally unstable personality disorder and had been classified as low risk of harm to the public, having no other sexual offences on her record.

The court heard she now had a stable partner who was in his "eighties".

Judge Jonathan Bennett told Foster her victim had "suffered enormously" and there had been an "element of grooming in her crimes".

He said: "You have a borderline IQ which is likely to have been a factor in your offending.

"But if you were remorseful you would have pleaded guilty at the first opportunity.

"The complainant has been left wondering what on earth was happening when you could have easily confirmed what you said to him in that conversation."

Foster, of The Crescent, Brimmington, admitted inciting a boy under 13 to engage in sexual activity with and without penetration.

Detective Constable Danielle Lynch, of Derbyshire Constabulary’s child investigation team, said: “This type of abuse not only traumatises victims at the time of the offence, but can have a lasting impact on their mental health and wellbeing throughout their life.

"I would like to pay tribute to the bravery which has been shown by the victim in this case in coming forward to report what happened, and throughout the investigation and court process.

“I hope that this sentence will allow the victim some form of closure and we would encourage anyone who has been a victim of sexual assault, or knows someone who has, to contact us. We will listen to you, and we will investigate.”