Timothy Schofield found guilty of sexually abusing boy

Timothy Schofield has been found guilty of 11 sexual offences involving a child

The brother of television presenter Phillip Schofield has been found guilty of sexually abusing a boy.

Timothy Schofield, 54, from Bath denied 11 sexual offences involving a child between October 2016 and October 2019.

Schofield, who was a civilian worker for Avon and Somerset Police at the time of the offences, was found guilty of all charges.

Phillip Schofield said after the verdict: "As far as I am concerned, I no longer have a brother."

The jury at Exeter Crown Court found him guilty with a majority of 10-2 after more than five-and-a-half hours' deliberating.

In a statement released by his lawyer, Phillip Schofield said his brother had committed a "despicable" crime.

"My overwhelming concern is and has always been for the wellbeing of the victim and his family. I hope that their privacy will now be respected."

Schofield arrived each day in court covering his head

During the trial, Timothy Schofield denied performing sexual acts on the boy but admitted he had watched pornography with the teenager and they had masturbated while sitting apart.

The jury previously heard how he had confessed to his TV star brother in September 2021 about watching pornography with the teenager on one occasion, claiming it had happened after the boy was 16, the age of consent.

Phillip Schofield described in a written statement read to the court how his brother had phoned him in an agitated and upset state, and Mr Schofield had invited him to drive to his home in London.

He told how his brother said "You are going to hate me for what I am about to say", with him assuring him there was nothing he could say that would do that.

Mr Schofield said in the statement: "Then he said that he and [the boy] had time together and that last year they had watched porn ... and [masturbated]".

Verdicts welcomed

"I turned and said, 'What did you just say?' He said it was last year and we were alone together. Tim said it was just this once. I told him it should never happen again. He then started to tell me about [the boy's] body.

"I said, 'F***, stop'. I shouted at Tim that he had to stop. I didn't want to know any of the details but he made it sound like a one-off.

"I said, 'I don't want you to tell me any more'. I said, 'You've got to stop, just never do it again. Regardless how that happened, it must never happen again'."

The This Morning presenter's statement issued after the guilty verdict on Monday said: "If any crime had ever been confessed to me by my brother, I would have acted immediately to protect the victim and their family," adding that he welcomed the guilty verdicts.

Robin Shellard, prosecuting, told the court the boy's evidence showed the abuse in fact began when he was aged 13.

Timothy Schofield has been remanded in custody and will be sentenced at Bristol Crown Court on 19 May.

Police employment concern

His employer, Avon & Somerset Police, said it would now start misconduct proceedings against him.

Schofield was suspended from duty in December 2021 when the criminal proceedings started.

Senior Investigating Officer Det Insp Keith Smith said: "[Schofield] has exploited and abused the victim by carrying out a sickening series of offences over a significant period of time."

"Although the defendant does not work in a public-facing role, and the offences are not linked to his employment, we know the fact he works for the police will be a matter of public concern," he added.

Schofield was convicted of three counts of causing a child to watch sexual activity, three of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, three of causing a child to engage in sexual activity and two of sexual activity with a child.

The victim told the jury he felt "emotionally blackmailed" by Timothy Schofield and "forced" to participate in sexual activity.

He said: "I felt that emotionally there was no escape from what we had to do and I felt that there was a tremendous amount of pressure and expectation for me to fulfil what was being asked and wanted."

An NSPCC spokesperson said Schofield's actions were "deeply harmful".

They added: "Child sexual abuse can have devastating and long-lasting impact on a person's life. We hope that the young man he targeted is receiving all the support he needs to move forward with his life."