Driving instructor who sexually assaulted pupils has jail term increased

A convicted pervert who abused his position as a driving instructor to sexually assault young pupils has had his prison sentence extended after two more victims came forward.

Both were teenagers when they started instruction at Gary Rolinson's 500+ Driving School in Kingswinford.

The instructor, then aged 60, would touch them on their thighs to indicate they had done something wrong, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.

The first pupil, aged 17, blocked Rolinson's hand, telling him: "I get the picture, there's no need to do that."

When the instructor touched him on his genitals over his clothes, he grabbed his hand and told him to 'pack it in.'

But the predatory instructor became 'quite blatant' in his behaviour, making lewd comments even in front of a female pupil to whom they were giving a lift, said Ms Samantha Crabb, prosecuting.

He told the second pupil, who was just 16, that touching him on the thigh 'helped with his clutch control'.

The teenager tried to treat his behaviour as a joke but Rolinson became emboldened when he realised the young man was not going to report him.

One time he told him to stop the car in a country lane and asked him to have intercourse.

The youngster felt the best response was to laugh it off but the instructor reminded him of the request during subsequent lessons.

Rolinson insisted that pupils took their driving tests in Wales 'because the roads were quieter'.

When the first student failed his driving test, Rolinson swore at him and called him 'pathetic' and on several occasions acted in an intimidating manner.

Ms Crabb said that Rolinson made both pupils feel 'desperately uncomfortable'.

And when they considered changing instructor, he made them feel guilty, telling them he was the cheapest in the area and that their parents, who were footing the bill, would not be pleased.

The defendant, now 62, yesterday admitted 10 offences of sexual touching involving the two young men between 2009 and 2014.

The pair came forward after police officers investigating complaints by other pupils, sent letters to all ex-students.

Rolinson's appearance at Wolverhampton Crown Court came almost two years after he was jailed for similar offences involving six teenagers during driving lessons between 2012 and 2014.

Rolinson was found guilty of 13 offences of sexual assault and one of causing a person to engage in sexual activity following a 14-day trial.

On that occasion one pupil spoke anonymously about the devastating effect Rolinson's behaviour had had on him.

He said: “When I was first assaulted I knew what he was doing was wrong and did ask that he shouldn’t do it again.

He just shrugged it off and said: ‘You’ll get used to it’. I felt vulnerable and violated.

"Because I’m a boy I felt as though I couldn’t say anything. It was as if people would laugh at me or not believe me. He made very small advances initially and the actions built up each lesson.

"He’d do something more serious each week. The thing that bothers me is his lack of remorse for his actions."

Increasing Rolinson's four-year sentence to five years and nine months, Judge James Burbidge, QC, ordered that he register as a sex offender for life.

He praised the victims for having the courage to come forward, saying they had carried the burden of Rolinson's 'secret' and even felt they had brought it upon themselves.

The court heard that Rolinson had contacted them both telling them not to co-operate with the police investigation, claiming it was a hoax.

Mr Niall Skinner, defending, said Rolinson, now 60 had been law-abiding citizen up to his mid-50s when he lost his job at Rover and started up his own driving school.