Revealed – Kids as young as THREE accused of rape and hundreds under age of 10 suspected of sexual assault
More than 80 youngsters under the age of 10 were suspected of committing rape in London between 2012 and 2017
CHILDREN as young as THREE have been accused of rape, the Sun Online can reveal today.
Shocking figures show more than 80 youngsters under the age of ten were suspected of committing rape in London between 2012 and 2017.
A Freedom of Information request submitted by Sun Online shows the shocking rise of under tens being investigated on suspicion of serious sex crimes.
Over the past five years, a staggering 377 young people were suspected of other sexual offences in the capital.
But disturbingly, none of them could be arrested or charged with a crime because of their young age.
The chilling figures show one three-year-old was a suspect in a rape case, while three children aged four were also suspects.
A further 25 seven-year-olds were also identified as rape suspects.
But children's charity NSPCC has warned the shocking figures obtained by Sun Online could be just the tip of the iceberg.
An NSPCC spokeswoman said the charity was aware sexual crimes being committed by children were happening "far too frequently".
"There is something particularly shocking and disturbing about a child being sexually abused by another young person," he said.
"Unfortunately, we know that it is happening far too frequently with our Childline service providing thousands of counselling sessions a year to children to whom this has happened.
"Both victim and perpetrator are at risk of suffering lasting damage as a result of this abuse.
"Tackling it demands that all children are introduced to concepts such as boundaries and consent from primary school onwards so they understand what sexual abuse is and know how to keep themselves safe."
The figures were from January 1, 2012, until September 30, 2017, and supplied by Scotland Yard.
The data also showed 175 children aged under ten were suspected of assault which caused injury.
The Metropolitan Police said the figures were for the apparent age of the suspect according to witnesses.
Criminal responsibility is the minimum age someone can be arrested or charged for a crime.
In England and Wales, the age of legal responsibility is ten while in Scotland it is eight.
Instead, the most they face is a curfew, a child protection order or being taken into care.
But Parliament last year were considering a bill that would raise the age of criminal responsibility from ten to 12.
It would mean child killers like Jon Venables and Robert Thompson could avoid jail in future.
A Met Police spokesperson said: “The MPS is concerned about the number of young people committing sexual offences.
"These are complex issues, as there are many reasons why young people find themselves as perpetrators of these serious offences.
“Often they are victims themselves and have suffered some sort of trauma, which allows them to be exploited by another to offend."
The force added: “To improve understanding and to tackle this, the MPS created a new ‘Safeguarding’ governance structure, with a number of senior officers looking at various issues including young people in the criminal justice system.”
“This is in addition to working closely with partner agencies to support young people of concern to ensure that we collectively offer the best possible interventions.”
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It comes after bombshell figures released in December showed the dramatic rise in young people being accused of serious crimes.
Over the last six years, 20,000 under tens have carried out sickening crimes including firearms possession, racially aggravated assault and threats to kill.
Data released by 30 of the 45 police forces in England and Wales showed numbers have more than doubled from 1,917 offences in 2012 to 4,209 in 2016.
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