Dangerous paedophile, 25, who insisted that he was a woman earned family's trust to groom 14-year-old girl and got her pregnant

David Orton was able to befriend victim because offender identified himself as transgender woman

By Edward Era Barbacena

A paedophile was able to groom, sexually assault and get a 14-year-old schoolgirl pregnant after identifying as a transgender women.

Tattooed David Orton befriended the young victim and her family and was trusted to be alone with her because of the 25-year-old's gender status.

But Orton was beginning a nine-and-a-half year jail sentence today after her parents alerted the police in October 2020.

Orton - of Hinckley, Leicestershire - had groomed the victim so extensively she had at first refused to believe she was being exploited and sexually abused.

But last June she told officers about the relationship and revealed she was pregnant with the sex offender's baby.

Last night women's rights campaigner Caroline Ffiske told MailOnline: 'This is the type of tragedy that gender critical women are worried about .

 'There is a risk that boundaries are lowered in an attempt to "be kind" but sex matters.' 

A source familiar with the case said the sex offender used the status as a transgender woman to get close to the victim.

They added: 'Orton used his identification as a woman to get close to his victim.'

MailOnline has been told Orton has been sent to a male prison. 

Last Thursday Leicester Crown Court heard the paedophile had used the name 'Danielle Rose Gemini' and had sex with the youngster after befriending her family.

Orton was arrested when the girl's parents became concerned about their daughter's relationship with her supposed friend.

Leicester Police said Orton had denied any wrongdoing but was found guilty of two counts of penetrative sexual activity with a child aged 13 to 15 after the trial.

The abuser was cleared of four more charges including two counts of raping a girl aged 13 to 15. 

Judge Timothy Spencer KC said: 'You are a self-pitying and self-obsessed individual who shows no detectable empathy and not a shred of remorse for your actions.

'Those actions have destroyed a mother and daughter relationship at a time when they should have been close, caused devastation to the wider family and taken away the teenaged years of a child that can never be re-lived.'

The victim cannot be named for legal reasons, but was said to be vulnerable.

Orton was referred to as a male in court and was charged under that gender. 

The fear a predatory man could identify as a woman to target females is often raised by women's rights campaigners.

They believe biological sex is immutable and women need female-only spaces.

Standing For Women founder Kellie-Jay Keen said: 'We know that predatory men will use any tool at their disposal to access victims.

'It's extraordinary naive to think they might not pretend to be women to give them unfettered access to children.

'Safeguarding must not ever bend to the whims of ideology, religions or cultural trends.

'When it does it leaves everyone more vulnerable' 

Detective Constable Sarah Le Boutillier, of Leicestershire Police, said: 'Orton used the victim's vulnerability for their own gain and not only groomed the victim, but also her parents who believed Orton was a genuine friend.

'Throughout our interviews, Orton refused to accept that there was any wrong doing and that they were in fact the victim. The claims were unfounded.

'This was a complex and lengthy investigation; the initial report was made to the police more than two years ago.

'The victim's parents refused to accept her initial explanations and persevered with their concerns.

'We are pleased the victim found the courage to eventually talk about what she had been through and recognised that she was a victim and that Orton's actions were not that of a friend.

'We hope the verdict and sentence now helps the victim to come to terms with what happened and try and put that time behind her, and also reassures her parents that they did the right thing by coming forward.

'We would like to reassure anyone else who may be in a similar situation to report their concerns, as they will be heard and we will help them through the process.

We know it's not always easy to speak out; we have specialist officers who can help you every step of the way and also put you in touch with agencies who can advise and support you moving forward.'