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Abuse Survivor: Cops Guarded As I Was Raped

A woman has told Sky News how uniformed police officers stood guard as abusers sexually assaulted her as a young girl.

Waiving her right to anonymity, Esther Baker, 32, spoke exclusively to Sky News about her tormented childhood that saw her sexually abused by men at various locations.

She claimed police officers would stand guard for the perpetrators and on some occasions even joined in the abuse in woodland on Cannock Chase in Staffordshire.

She said: "I got the feeling very much that they were protecting somebody, that they were with one of the men.

"One of them (police officers) I knew from church. There were a few occasions where they would be in uniform, and I kind of knew, I learnt that when they were in uniform that it was going to be a rough night.

"On occasion they would - they would sort of join in," she added.

Ms Baker recalls one police officer apologising to her.

"There was one that I can remember, one of the times I tried to run away and tried to get away from them and he came after me, caught up with me and he was carrying me back to where the rest of them were and he said he was sorry," she said.

From the age of six, Ms Baker was taken to be abused by different men on Cannock Chase, at various properties around Staffordshire and beyond.

Other children were often there and sometimes they were given alcohol: "We were all pretty much the same, same ages, we never spoke, I don't know where they came from, who brought them."

She says the sexual abuse was often filmed and involved men of varying ages from different parts of the country.

She said: "I don't quite know how to explain. I was brought up in a religious household and one thing that kept me so sure that what they were doing was right was that there were references to people, Lords and a judge.

"I picked up on those names, because I thought one of them must have been God because one of them was 'Our Lord'.

"I just thought that they were on God's authority."

Decades on, Ms Baker has now finally decided to speak out and has made the painful decision to approach the police again, who have assured her that her claims will be investigated thoroughly.

She has recently taken part in a series of gruelling video interviews with detectives recounting the abuse.

She decided to speak to Sky News in the hope of finding other victims or the police officers who were involved .

She said: "I would say to the one that was sorry that he knows who these people were and why they were there.

"I need them to fill in the gaps that I just don't know, I need people that were adults then but they couldn't stop it for whatever reason, it is time for them to stop it now."

The other children who were allegedly abused on Cannock Chase may also hold vital information.

Ms Baker added: "I know they are terrified to come forward, I know what they were told, I know what threats were made and I know why they are scared.

"But every one of us that comes forward will hold a different piece of the puzzle. I can't fill it in on my own."

Ms Baker has given the name of one politician to the police and a detailed account of the years of abuse.

She said: "I always swore I would never go near the police again - never ... but I have hid it for 20 years, that has not worked, that hasn't taken the fear away - I have got nothing to lose anymore."

Ms Baker has ongoing support from the Lantern Project on Merseyside who work with survivors of sexual abuse.

:: Anyone who has concerns about a child or wants advice can contact the NSPCC for free 24 hours a day, by calling 0808 800 5000, or emailing help@nspcc.org.uk.