A man pushed a 10-year-old boy off a 100ft cliff when he tried to stop him from abusing his sister.

Anthony Stocks is facing trial for serious charges of attempted murder and rape of a young girl. The court heard that he had thrown a 10-year-old boy off a 100ft clifftop in Brighton in an attempt to silence him and continue his sexual abuse of the child's sister.

According to the prosecution, Stocks took the boy from London to Brighton without his mother's knowledge and deliberately pushed him off the cliff in front of horrified onlookers. The boy miraculously survived the fall but sustained severe injuries and had to be airlifted to a hospital in London. Initially, it was believed to be a tragic accident, but further investigations revealed a much darker motive behind the incident.

Zoe Johnson KC, the prosecutor, explained that Stocks had forced the young girl to engage in sexual activities with him, knowing it was wrong. The boy had started to intervene, and Stocks, in an attempt to silence him, took him to the cliffs in Brighton. It was there that he pushed the boy off the edge, intending to kill him. The prosecution believes it was a pre-planned and intentional act, as Stocks had previously contemplated pushing the boy from a quarry in Oxfordshire.

Jurors were told that Stocks had taken the boy to Brighton by train on the day of the alleged offence. Witnesses later described seeing them walking along a grass verge towards the top of the cliffs. One witness, Anthony Boulding, saw the boy having fun, with his hands out as if balancing, and Stocks walking behind him, matching his pace. About ten minutes later, Boulding heard a noise and saw a figure on the wrong side of the fence at the top of the cliff. Another figure stood behind, and then suddenly, he heard shouts and saw a small shape fall from the cliff. It was the boy, and Boulding immediately realized it was not an accident.

Boulding and his friend made their way back to the under cliff and noticed a crowd of people surrounding the injured boy. They saw Stocks among the people who came to the boy's aid, and he did not attempt to escape. Emma Betts, one of the people who stayed with the boy until the ambulance arrived, recalled seeing Stocks approach the boy and say, "I told him not to go near the edge." He then rolled a cigarette and got out his phone, rather than showing any concern for the boy's condition.

The boy sustained serious injuries from the fall, including deep lacerations to his scalp, abrasions to his chest, multiple bruises, fractures to his arm, and deformity to his shoulder. Due to the high impact trauma, he has no recollection of the fall itself.

Stocks was initially arrested for child neglect and causing or allowing the serious injury of a child. During his first police interview, he claimed that he had taken the boy to the seaside and sat on a bench while the boy stood near the edge of the cliff. He said he thought the boy was hiding and only realized he had fallen when he went looking for him.

However, Stocks was later arrested again for sexual activity with a child under 13 and rape of a child under 13. In his initial police interview, his solicitor read out a statement on his behalf, denying any sexual attraction towards children and denying any involvement in sexual activities with them. But in November 2023, he was arrested for attempted murder.

The trial continues as the court hears more evidence against Stocks and the extent of his crimes. This disturbing case serves as a reminder of the dangers of sexual predators and the importance of protecting children from harm.

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