Marie McCarthy was convicted of four counts of indecent assault on a male person at Liverpool Crown Court in October. She received a sentence of imprisonment for 21 months, which was suspended for 2 years.

This sentence was referred to the Court of Appeal under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme by the Solicitor General, Robert Buckland QC MP, who today said:

“I referred the case to the Court of Appeal as I felt the original sentence failed to fully reflect the seriousness of the crime, which involved Marie McCarthy grooming and indecently assaulting a person who was significantly younger than herself many times over a period of five weeks.

“I hope this immediate prison term sends a strong message that crimes of this nature will not be tolerated and that male and female victims and perpetrators will be treated equally before the law.”