Gavin Plumb was unanimously convicted of soliciting murder and inciting rape and kidnap following an earlier trial at Chelmsford Crown Court. He faces a lengthy prison sentence on Friday for his “depraved and vile” plans. The 37-year-old was snared after a US undercover police officer infiltrated an online group called Abduct Lovers and became so concerned about Plumb’s posts that evidence was passed to the FBI.
US law enforcement in turn contacted police in the UK, and when Essex Police officers raided Plumb’s flat in Harlow they found bottles of chloroform and an “abduction kit” complete with cable ties. During Plumb’s sentencing hearing, prosecutor Alison Morgan KC said Ms Willoughby wished for her victim personal statement to be private but said it set out the “catastrophic impact of these offences”. She continued: “What I can say, and I make this submission from the prosecution.
.. it is abundantly clear that in making that statement the prosecution submits the impact of this offending has been life-changing for the victim of these offences – both in private and personal terms – private, personal and indeed professional.
“It is clear, the prosecution submit...
that the extent of the shock and fear caused by this offending has been impossible to convey. “Indeed, being informed of the consequences, the intentions, and the detail of the evidence in this case..
. it is inevitable that that has exacerbated the trauma for this victim.” Ms Morgan sai.