US paedophile extradited for abusing boy in 1970s

Robert Flynn was flown back to the UK and arrested at Heathrow Airport in June

A paedophile who was extradited from the US to face justice for crimes he committed in Britain almost 50 years ago has been jailed.

Robert Flynn was working in the UK in the 1970s when he sexually abused a teenager over a several years in the Rossendale area of Lancashire.

In a statement the victim, now in his 60s, said Flynn's actions had affected his whole adult life.

Flynn, 77, was jailed at Preston Crown Court for nine years and eight months after admitting four counts of indecent assault on a boy under 16 on 7 July.

The American citizen had returned to the US in 1976 but after the victim reported what happened to him to police in 2021 an extradition process was launched.

Victim 'rebuilding his life'

In May police in Northern Ohio and the US Marshals Office of International Operations arrested Flynn in the state.

He was flown back to the UK and arrested at Heathrow Airport in June.

In his court statement the victim said with the help and support of friends he had survived and after coming forward and reporting the abuse to police he was rebuilding his life and was ready to be happy.

The investigating officer, Mick Cross, praised his "courage".

"I hope the fact that Flynn has admitted his guilt and now been jailed for his crimes gives the victim some sense that justice has been done and that he can continue to move forward with his life," he said.