Adoption couple guilty of cruelty

(UKPA)

A couple who allowed their adopted children to be abused by two paedophiles have been found guilty of child cruelty.

Both sisters told their parents of the catalogue of abuse they suffered but they did nothing to prevent future assaults.

A jury at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court found the couple failed to protect the girls.

The adoptive father was also convicted of sexually abusing the elder girl over a six-year period.

Last year, Colin Molloy and Sam Nelson were jailed after pleading guilty to a string of sexual offences committed against the two youngsters, which started when they were as young as seven and 13.

The husband and wife, aged 55 and 54, who live within the Trafford borough of Greater Manchester, had denied all charges against them.

Sentencing of the couple, who cannot be named for legal reasons, takes place on October 1.

Pauline Newman, Manchester City Council's director of children's services, said: "When this couple applied to become adoptive parents, a full assessment and all the proper checks were carried out.

"After this terrible case came to light we asked for our actions at the time to be independently evaluated to ensure that the correct procedures were followed - which they were.

"The sad fact is that there will always be a small minority people who wish to hurt the most vulnerable in our society."