Senior judges confirmed 43-year-old Michael Beattie must remain subject to a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) because of the “predatory” way he targeted the victim. But they amended the terms to a ban on any access with young girls so that he can be visited by his son in prison. Advertisement Advertisement Did you know with an ad-lite subscription to NorthernIrelandWorld, you get 70% fewer ads while viewing the news that matters to you.
Beattie, from Bresagh Road in Lisburn, is currently serving a four-year sentence for grooming and abusing the 15-year-old girl over a four-month period at his stables. He allegedly told her that he would leave his wife and eventually wanted people to know about them, but not at that stage because she was too young. Police were alerted after a friend of the victim saw the pair kissing in March 2019.
Beattie initially denied the charges, insisting to police that he was a married man. Advertisement Advertisement But at the start of his trial last year he pleaded guilty to six counts of sexual activity with a child aged 13 to 16 and two counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity. He was ordered to serve two years in custody and a further two years on licence.
A five-year SOPO which formed part of the sentence included prohibitions on contact with either the victim, who is now aged over 18, or children under 16 of either gender. Beattie, who cannot be released from jail before May next year, appealed against both the decisio.
