Serial paedophile Richard Burrows has been jailed for 46 years for numerous sexual offences against young boys.

The 81-year-old former boarding school housemaster and scout leader, spent 27 years on the run in Thailand before he was arrested at Heathrow Airport last year.

Before his trial, Burrows admitted 43 offences – including indecent assault of boys, making indecent images of children, possession of indecent images of children and four counts of possession of false identity documents with intent.

He denied 54 others, which jurors at Chester Crown Court convicted him of last month.

Those offences include indecent assault of boys, buggery, attempted buggery and indecency with a child.

The trial heard that Burrows had obtained positions of authority and systematically abused 24 boys from the 1960s to the mid-1990s.

He had worked as a housemaster at a school for troubled boys and befriended other youngsters through amateur radio clubs.

Burrows was initially charged in May 1997 but failed to attend a hearing later that year.

He remained on the wanted list until police using facial recognition software matched him to a man using the name Peter Smith. He had stolen the identity of a terminally ill friend to obtain a passport.

Burrows described “living in paradise” in emails found after his eventual arrest, written after he fled to Thailand.

The judge Steven Everett told Burrows: “You are a despicable man. You have ruined countless lives.

“These serious sexual assaults were committed by you because you are a predator.

“You deliberately positioned yourself among groups and communities to get closer to them, and to groom and sexually abuse young boys.”

The judge said he had “no doubt” he was never going to come back to the UK had he not run out of money and been diagnosed with cancer.

“I have seen no remorse in your behaviour,” he added.

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One of those was his first victim, aged 14 at the time in the late 1960s, and now 71.

He told Sky News’ chief North of England correspondent Greg Milam that he feels like a weight has been lifted after waiting 57 years for justice.

“It does actually feel like a weight’s been lifted. You hear that expression all through life, but it’s the first time ever really felt it,” he said.

He described Burrows as a “devious, nasty creature”.

After he was sentenced, Detective Inspector Eleanor Atkinson branded him a “coward”.

“He knew he was guilty in 1997, but rather than face the consequences of his actions, he fled the country after fraudulently obtaining a passport using the identity of an unwell man,” she said.

“He spent the last 27 years, in his own words, ‘living in paradise’. It is clear that he did not spare a thought for his victims, who were trying to live their lives under the shadow of the abuse they had suffered.”

Crown Prosecution Service prosecutor Samantha Thompson said Burrows will “very likely never leave prison”.

“Burrows is an unrepentant paedophile who used his position of trust to sexually abuse boys over three decades,” she said.

“His victims suffered horrendous abuse made worse by many of them not being able to tell anyone for fear that they would not be believed.

“This was borne out in some cases, where boys did speak up but were dismissed, and Burrows was able to move on.”

The Prince and Princess of Wales have visited an ancient forest alongside children and their parents to celebrate the environment.

William and Kate spent the second and final day of their Isle of Mull trip with children and their parents in the Ardura Community Forest to participate in an outdoor learning session.

The forest is an ancient oak wood and part of the Atlantic rainforest which is home to a rich and diverse array of birds, mammals and plants, according to its website.

The royal couple joined the youngsters in activities to learn about the work rangers do to protect one of Scotland’s most precious natural habitats.

The schoolchildren who met the royals were part of an outdoor learning play group called Ardura Acorns, which introduces members to nature trails, den building and animal tracking.

Their visit coincides with the announcement of royal funding to safeguard two nature warden roles on Mull and neighbouring Iona, which have been essential for helping to preserve the way of life of remote communities on the isles.

William and Kate celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary on Tuesday and marked the occasion by releasing a romantic picture taken in the Inner Hebrides.

“Wonderful to be back on the Isle of Mull. Thank you to everyone for such a warm welcome,” the royals captioned the image, shared via their official X account.

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The Prince and Princess of Wales are set to take the ferry to Iona following their Isle of Mull visit to spend private time together.

Mull is part of lands once ruled by the Lord of the Isles, one of a number of Scottish titles William inherited from his father Charles when he became King.

The officer cleared of murder after shooting dead Chris Kaba will face a gross misconduct hearing, following a review by the police watchdog.

The 24-year-old’s family welcomed the decision, saying they hope it leads to sergeant Martyn Blake, 41, being sacked from the Metropolitan Police.

Mr Kaba, who was not armed, had both hands on the steering wheel of his vehicle when he was shot in the head by the firearms officer in Streatham, south London, on 5 September 2022.

A helicopter and six police cars were involved in stopping Mr Kaba after the Audi Q8 he was driving had been linked to a shooting outside a school in nearby Brixton the previous evening.

Mr Kaba had turned into Kirkstall Gardens, where Mr Blake was inside a marked police BMW, before trying to make his escape.

The murder trial hinged on the following 17 seconds, when Mr Kaba reversed a short distance, hitting an unmarked police car behind, then accelerated forward, reaching an estimated 12mph before colliding with the BMW and a parked Tesla.

Armed officers were heard shouting “go, go, go” and “armed police, get out of the f***ing car,” as they surrounded Mr Kaba’s vehicle in footage played in court.

Mr Kaba then reversed at 8mph, hitting the unmarked Volvo behind, and was stationary as Mr Blake pulled the trigger of his gun less than a second later, followed by shouts of “shots fired” and “where from?”

He died in hospital in the early hours of the next day after the bullet travelled through the windscreen and struck him in the head.

Speaking after Mr Blake was cleared of murder in October, Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said the officer made a split-second decision on what he thought was necessary “to protect his colleagues and to protect London”.

Prosecutors had argued Mr Blake may have “become angry, frustrated and annoyed” and Mr Kaba had done nothing in the seconds before he was shot to justify his decision to pull the trigger.

The officer said he didn’t intend to kill Mr Kaba, adding: “I had a genuine belief that there was an imminent threat to life, I thought one or more of my colleagues was about to die.”

The jury – which was not told Mr Kaba was a core member of a notorious south London gang who was suspected of carrying out a nightclub shooting – deliberated for about three hours before finding Mr Blake not guilty of murder.

But the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said he will face a gross misconduct hearing after a “thorough review” of all the evidence in the case.

The threshold is a lower test than for criminal proceedings and a police disciplinary panel will decide whether misconduct is proven or not.

IOPC director Amanda Rowe said: “We understand the impact this decision will have on Chris Kaba’s family and Sergeant Blake and acknowledge the significant public interest in this case, particularly among our black communities, firearms officers and the wider policing community.

“This is a decision we have taken based on examining all the evidence, views of all parties and by applying the thresholds set out in legislation and guidance which govern our work.

“The legal test for deciding whether there is a case to answer is low – is there sufficient evidence upon which, on the balance of probabilities, a disciplinary panel could make a finding of misconduct. This has been met and therefore we need to follow the legal process. 

“We appreciate that the Home Office is carrying out a review of the legal test for the use of force in misconduct cases, however, we must apply the law as it currently stands.”

Mr Kaba’s family vowed they “won’t be silenced” and would continue fighting for “justice and for real change” following the verdict.

In a statement issued through the charity Inquest after the IOPC’s decision, they said: “We hope this leads to him being removed from the Met Police.

“What Martyn Blake did was deeply wrong. We are still so devastated to have lost Chris – this should never have happened.

“The fact that the Met promoted Martyn Blake after the verdict only deepened our pain and showed a complete disregard for our loss.

“Martyn Blake should not be allowed to remain a police officer. He should lose his job.”

The Met said the force made “strong representations” that Mr Blake, who they referred to by the cypher NX121 used before a judge lifted an anonymity order, should not face any further action.

Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said: “We know any fatal use of force by police understandably prompts concern among communities.

“NX121 made a split-second decision on what he believed was necessary to protect his colleagues and London and a jury unanimously decided that was an honestly-held belief and the force used was reasonable.

“However, the IOPC has now determined that NX121 has a case to answer for his use of force and has directed us to hold a gross misconduct hearing.

“We know another lengthy process will fall heavily on the shoulders of NX121 and more widely our firearms officers, who continue to bravely and tirelessly police the streets of London every day to protect the public.”

Mr Taylor said the Met will ask a chief officer from another force to chair the hearing to ensure independence.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has ordered a review into the accountability of firearms officers.

Some of the force’s firearms officers turned in their weapons in protest after Mr Blake was charged with murder and the IOPC’s decision is likely to cause further concern.

Mr Blake is only the fourth police officer to be charged with murder or manslaughter over a fatal police shooting in England and Wales since 1990, while a total of 83 people have died in such incidents, according to the Inquest charity.

In that time, only one on-duty officer, Benjamin Monk, has been found guilty of manslaughter – over the death of former Aston Villa striker Dalian Atkinson, 48 – while none have been convicted of murder.