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London 2012 Olympian Antony James has been convicted of raping two teenage girls who were under the age of 18 at the time.
James, 34, was also found guilty of sexually touching one of the girls when she was under the age of 16 and getting the other to send him sexually explicit pictures when she was under the age of 16.
He was officially found guilty by a jury at Plymouth Crown Court of three counts of rape, three charges of sexual activity with a child, and two counts of causing a child to engage in sexual activity.
He had previously pleaded guilty to six counts of making indecent photographs of a child.
The jury could not reach a verdict on one count of sexual activity with a child and five counts of rape. The Crown Prosecution Service has one week to seek retrial on those counts.
James committed the offenses between 2012 and 2022.
As a swimmer, James represented Great Britain on the international stage numerous times, including the 2012 Olympics in London, where he finished 32nd in the men’s 100 butterfly. At the 2011 World Championships in Shanghai, he was a semi-finalist in the 50 fly, placing 15th, and also took 19th in the 100 fly.
The Plymouth native was also a two-time medalist at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, earning a pair of silvers, and also competed at multiple European Championships and the 2013 World University Games.
James previously worked as a student officer with Devon and Cornwall Police in southwest England. Following his initial arrest in 2022, he was immediately suspended and is no longer an employee of the force.
The Court heard that he was a friendly and charming man, but was also a “serial liar and manipulator,” according to The BBC.
One of the girls told the jury: “I didn’t feel like I could, or should, say no because I really loved him and trusted him… I felt like if I didn’t seem interested in the same things he was interested in, he wouldn’t think I was grown up enough.”
The girl reportedly even told police he was a “good man” at the time of his arrest and did not want him to go to prison.
Senior Crown Prosecutor Gemma Kneebone said James “manipulated and controlled his teenage victims to fulfill his own sexual desires.”
“He claimed that these young victims were over 16 at the time, but this was a lie which collapsed under scrutiny,” she said.
“James was well aware of how young these victims were, and he set out to take advantage of this in a truly appalling manner, continuing to offend against them after they turned 16.
“This prosecution would not have been possible without the evidence so bravely provided by the young women involved, and I would like to thank them for coming forward to support the case.”
The judge told James to expect a “substantial” prison term.