Kaitlin pictured aged nine - Heart pounding, Kaitlin Womack stared in shock at a Facebook post on her phone. In that moment, a horrifying memory from her childhood came flooding back. It was 2016, and her former neighbour, Kert Birtwistle, 29, had been convicted of child sexual offences. Seeing his face on her screen knocked Kaitlin, 25, for six. Because what nobody knew was that she’d been harbouring an awful secret since the age of nine. Birtwistle had subjected Kaitlin to three sickening sexual assaults while she played at his house as a child, including touching her privates under her swimming costume. Three years later, in 2019, Kaitlin, from Preston, reported Birtwistle to the police. When she did, six other victims also bravely came forward. In October 2024, Birtwistle, from Blackpool, was convicted of 14 charges, including rape and sexual assault. He was jailed for 12 years at Preston Crown Court. His brother, Jordan Wright, 28, also pleaded guilty to 18 sexual offences and was jailed for over 16 years. Now, Kaitlin is courageously waiving her right to anonymity to help encourage other survivors to report their abusers to the police.
A northern potoo shows it is a master of disguise as it perches on a tree stump and blends into the bark .
With the full moon looming behind him, this polar bear nestles down for the night .
Soldiers standing guard outside the Woolwich barracks in London - Two terror suspects are under armed guard in separate hospitals in London after a serving soldier was hacked to death in the street .
WELCOME to the 125 decibel boombox bus that could damage your hearing if you party too close to its giant speakers .
A brave leopard kicks back and relaxes in the sunshine - just inches from an enormous crocodile .
GLAMPING is taken to a whole new level in the form of the luxurious Pop-Up Hotel .
SITTING in the middle of a vast desert, an abandoned cinema is still waiting for its first movie to be screened .
NOT YOUR everyday selfie, this plucky diver poses with some of the scariest predators in the ocean .
A brave praying mantis makes an unusual friend in an Oriental garden lizard .
THIS DANGER-mad female pensioner could be the oldest Brit to cage dive with CROCODILES .
