A successful fashion photographer has been jailed for seven years, after being convicted of abusing young models.
It emerged in court that Shaun Colclough had learned his trade while serving a prison sentence in 2002 for raping an 84-year old woman. Colclough, then 22, followed the pensioner home, before breaking into her house and attacking her. He was only caught six year later when his DNA matched prints taken at the scene.
Six years later, Colclough set up his own photography studio in Hackney, east London and changed his name to Shaun Peacock. Colclough became a big name amongst London model agencies where he regularly photographed model portfolios.
The court heard how Colclough began exploiting the young models' inexperience, regularly asking models intimately personal questions, forcing them into explicit sexual poses and demanding they perform sex acts on him.
Colclough’s behaviour was only detected after one model exposed his advances towards her online. She was later blacklisted by high-profile modelling agencies so reported her experiences to the police. A number of other younger models came forward, reporting similar behaviour from the photographer.
Jailing the photographer for seven years, the judge told the court:
"Your sexual gratification is, and I am sure always will be, linked to the humiliation and degradation of women."
Police are urging other victims to come forward in confidence, believing a number of women are too frightened it will hurt career prospects if they make claims against the photographer.
