November 2006

Ex-mayor dies after rape jail term

A FORMER Mayor who was jailed for ten years after raping a teenager and sexually assaulting three girls, has died.

Nick Green, a former mayor of Westhoughton, was sentenced to 10 years in October 1998.

He died, aged 77, at St Helen’s Nursing Home in Scarborough, where he had been staying since his release.

It is believed Mr Green, a former Labour leader of Westhoughton Town Council, had been suffering from ill health. News of his death, on July 25, has only just emerged. He was jailed at Bolton Crown Court after admitting three charges of rape and 13 of indecent assault. He admitted raping a teenager 25 to 30 years previously, with the indecent assaults against three young girls aged six to 10.

October 1998

Child rape man jailed

THE former Mayor of Westhoughton Nicholas Green has been jailed for 10 years after admitting charges of rape and indecent assault.

On one occasion, evil Green forced sex on a young woman on her wedding day.

Green, aged 69, of Holden Lea, Westhoughton, appeared before Bolton Crown Court yesterday and pleaded guilty to three charges of rape and 13 of indecent assault.

Green was a long-standing councillor and leader of Westhoughton Council and a Labour party stalwart.

Beverley Lunt, prosecuting, said the rapes all took place between 25 and 30 years ago on a girl who was then a teenager but is now a woman in her 40s.

The indecent assaults were committed against three young girls, aged from six to 10 at the time, daughters of working mothers who had placed their children in day-time care with an unregistered child minding service run by Green’s unsuspecting wife.

Green pleaded not guilty to a further four charges of indecent assault on another young girl and these cases were ordered to “lie on the file.”

Miss Lunt said that after his retirement Green had helped out his wife with her child minding activities and had committed offences against girls when his wife was not present. None of Green’s victims may be identified for legal reasons.

Miss Lunt said that when one of the girls made allegations of being sexually abused by Green, he was interviewed by police on Friday, June 26, this year.

He strongly denied the allegations at that time but, five days later, he sexually interfered with another girl.

Other victims, including the adult woman, came forward when it became known that Green was under investigation, Miss Lunt said.

Their allegations were put to Green and he made admissions.

The adult woman alleged that Green had had sex with her against her will about 10 times when she was a young woman, including once on her wedding day, Miss Lunt said.

She said that as a girl, the woman had contemplated suicide because of threats Green had made to prevent disclosure of his activities.

She said Green had claimed in interview that she had never objected to intercourse. He also claimed that one of the young girls being “minded” had egged him on with talk about sex lessons at school.

Robert Elias, defending, said that Green’s behaviour “beggared belief” and had resulted in him becoming the focus of parental hatred.

He said a fatal flaw of personality had been exposed in a man who otherwise had an exemplary character and who was noted for his lifelong good work in the community.

Mr Elias suggested that, had he died six months ago, Green’s obituary would have consisted solely of fulsome praise. He had now lost all his standing in the community and his marriage.

He said Green wished to apologise for his behaviour. He asked for Green’s admissions of guilt to be taken into account in the sentence.

“Don’t crush him completely,” he pleaded.

Judge Timothy Mort said Green’s behaviour was an appalling abuse of trust.

Sending him to prison for 10 years, the judge ordered that after his release Green should be subject to a supervision order and should register with the police as a sex offender.