John Merritt, who sexually assaulted two boys throughout his adolescence, slumped dramatically in the dock upon receiving his sentence.
The 60-year-old resident, John Merritt, of Leathers Lane, Halewood, refuted allegations of sexually abusing youngsters over forty years ago.
At the age of 14 or 15, using the alias Walter Merritt, he perpetrated rapes against his victims in Belle Vale and Netherley.
John Merritt presented chocolate to Boy A, thereafter luring him inside his residence and sexually assaulting him in a restroom and an adjacent field.
John Merritt also sexually assaulted Boy B in the restroom, seizing the opportunity after his mother invited the underprivileged child in for tea and cake.
Boy B recounted how the abuse “devastated” his life and ultimately resulted in his incarceration, as he resorted to theft to procure drugs to numb the trauma.
The paedophile father of four, with prior convictions for violence, weapon possession, and a racially motivated incident, perpetrated the assaults in the 1970s.
John Merritt was convicted of three counts of a sexual crime, now classified as rape, following a trial in March.
He was incarcerated for eight years.
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