Steve Dawson, the founding member and bassist of Saxon, has been sentenced to six years in jail after he was found guilty of four charges of indecent assault against a six-year old child in the 1990s. The verdict was announced earlier this year, and he has now been sentenced by the Sheffield Crown Court. Dawson had been accused of repeatedly abusing the victim, who is now an adult, when she was only 6 years old.
Speaking about the verdict, Detective Constable Robert Heath, who worked on the case for South Yorkshire Police said: “Stephen Dawson thought he had got away with committing these horrific crimes against a young, vulnerable victim 30 years ago… She has shown extraordinary strength through coming forward. It is clear that his evil acts have remained with her throughout her life, and I hope this sentence goes some way to allowing her to move on from these traumatic events.”
Dawson was a member of Saxon for almost two decades, joining the band in 1975 as a founding member and playing bass until his departure in 1986. He also played with Yorkshire SOB in a previous band. Dawson was featured in all of the band’s albums from their debut self-titled release in 1979 until Innocence Is No Excuse in 1985. Dawson then went on to form Oliver/Dawson Saxon with guitarist Graham Oliver, playing together until the former’s retirement from the industry in 2021.
After the verdict, Detective Constable Heath urged anyone who has been subjected to any form of history of sexual abuse to come forward and to report them. He also emphasized that reporting these crimes can make a difference in the investigation and prosecution processes.
In case of sexual harassment, assault and rape, help and advice are available in the UK through Rape Crisis UK. RAINN can help residents of the United States
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