A former director has been sentenced to 17 years in prison for sexual crimes against four girls.
Neil Foden, from Old Colwyn, was found guilty in May after a three-week trial at Mold Crown Court in north Wales.
The 66-year-old was headmaster of Ysgol Friars School in Bangor, Gwynedd.
He was found guilty of 19 charges in total – including 12 counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of sexual activity with a child in a position of trust.
He was also convicted of one count of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, attempting to arrange the commission of a child sex offense, sexual communication with a child, possession of indecent photographs of a child for display and sexual assault of a child under 13 years old.
He will serve two-thirds of his sentence in prison before being released on license.
‘Terrible secret’
Sentencing him on Monday, Judge Rowlands said Foden was “a man admired by many in the education system” but had “managed to hide a terrible secret”.
He said Foden “repeatedly took advantage of young girls” repeatedly “to satisfy his “depraved sexual needs”.
“You were in a position of trust in relation to the children in your care,” he added.
“It is clear that you have no remorse, have not shown an ounce of regret for what you have done and have no idea of the undoubtedly very serious harm you have caused to individual victims and their families,” he said. added.
Judge Rowlands said Foden was “a strong and intimidating presence” at his school – a man “people were afraid to cross”.
He added that Foden recognized the vulnerability of his victims. But he added: “Even so, you still deliberately attacked them.”
Foden became headmaster of the Ysgol Friars in 1997 and was later asked to “supervise a second school”. He also served as a union representative.
He was arrested on September 6 last year at his place of work.
Foden police interview. Photo: North Wales Police
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‘Bad’
The court heard personal statements from victims of the four complainants.
Two were read in person, while the others were read by the prosecution on behalf of the victims.
One victim said she “felt lucky” that Foden had been found guilty and that she “will never have to see him again”.
“Foden has affected the way I see and view relationships,” said another.
Another said she doesn’t think she will “ever fully recover from this.”
While a quarter said what Foden did was “bad”.
“This hit me hard and I will never forgive him,” his statement read.
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Neil Foden. Photo: PA
‘Shock and revulsion’
The trial heard he abused the four complainants, who cannot be named, over a four-year period.
The jury returned a guilty verdict and cleared Foden of one count of sexual activity with a child on Wednesday, May 15, at Mold Crown Court.
Gareth Evans, assistant chief constable of North Wales Police, said the force shared “our communities’ shock and disgust at their actions”.
“I cannot overstate the impact this has had on our communities, and particularly young people in the region,” he said.
“I encourage anyone who has experienced sexual violence in the past to come forward. We are here to listen. We are here to support you. We will do our best for you.”
Ceri Ellis-Jones, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “We welcome the sentence handed down today and hope it provides comfort to victims knowing that Foden has now been brought to justice.”
After passing sentence, Judge Rowlands praised the police “for the thoroughness of their investigation”.
He also said he wished to “put on record the court’s admiration for the individual victims and, indeed, their families for their courage in speaking out.”
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