Dad Falsely Accused By His Children Of Leading Satanic Child Abuse Ring Talks About 'Horrific' Ordeal

Dad Falsely Accused By His Children Of Leading Satanic Child Abuse Ring Talks About 'Horrific' Ordeal
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A dad who was falsely accused of sacrificing babies and drinking their blood as part of a satanic cult at a primary school has told how his life had been 'shattered' by his ordeal.

In videos that were viewed four million times worldwide, actor Ricky Dearman was accused by his own children of abusing them and of being a satanic cult leader.

But when police launched an investigation, the claims were withdrawn after Mr Dearman's kids – aged eight and nine - said they'd been tortured into making the accusations by mum Ella Draper and her partner Abraham Christie.

A family court judgment published last month found the allegations were 'baseless'.

Detectives are now hunting Christie and Draper - who are believed to have fled abroad – and Mr Dearman is hoping to gain custody of his children, who tragically are now in care.

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In an emotional interview with the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire, Mr Dearman wept as he said: "They'd said we were killing babies, I was shipping them in, we would cut the babies' throats and drain their blood and then would drink the blood. It's just horrific upon horrific detail.

"Having to go and watch these videos when your own children say these things about you, imagine what the children must have had to do in their own psyche, their own minds, to eventually give up to beatings and stuff to say this stuff.

"I get death threats. Today, yesterday, still. Comments, 'paedo', whatever. I understand, I get it. What we have is a 77-page judgement totally clearing me 100 per cent."

Story continues after video...

Draper and Christie, from Hampstead, north west London, made the claims against various members of the local community in a series of online posts.

Judge Justice Pauffley told the High Court claims of a 100-strong satanic paedophile ring based at Christ Church Primary School in Hampstead were 'utter nonsense'.

She ruled that the youngsters' 'fantasy' accounts of abuse stemmed from 'relentless emotional and psychological pressure' by Draper and Christie, who beat them into concocting stories.

Tests on the children showed they had both ingested cannabis in the months before being taken into care.

The judge had been asked to examine the facts in a family court hearing by Barnet social services.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "Following the ruling made by the High Court and comments made by the judge, officers are investigating whether any offences of child abuse have taken place.

"We would advise members of the public not to forward or share material on the internet that they believe is related to this enquiry."

The video clips were viewed online around the world. Dozens of other innocent individuals across Hampstead and Highgate also saw their names and addresses published online, with many saying their lives had been 'destroyed' as a result.

In a statement, the school said: "These events have demonstrated the speed and uncontrolled way in which untrue information about any innocent organisation or group of people can spread on the internet and the shock and damage that malicious information circulated in this way can cause to individuals and families.

"This has been a distressing and difficult time for all of us at Christ Church Primary School."

In a separate interview after the court case, Mr Dearman told local newspaper the Ham & High that his reputation had been 'shattered' by the allegations.

He said the case highlighted that 'currently the criminal law is inadequate and disproportionate to the harm that has been caused'.

He highlighted 'the need for the criminal law to be extended to include sufficient scope for arresting and dealing with offenders who subject others to the abuse, indignity and humiliation of uploading material such as has been uploaded in this case'.

The Malicious Communications Act (1998) makes it illegal to send another person a letter, electronic communication or article of any description which 'conveys a message which is indecent or grossly offensive; a threat; or information which is false and known or believed to be false by the sender'.

The maximum penalty for those found guilty is six months. The act has come under criticism from liberty groups concerned about its scope for suppressing free speech.

But Mr Dearman's lawyer, June Venters QC, told the newspaper: "Six months is wholly inadequate for the damage done to my client and others in this case. It has ruined his reputation. This case shows we need changes in the law."

• Victoria Derbyshire is broadcast weekdays from 9.15am to 11am on BBC Two and the BBC News Channel.