Powys woman fled home after sexual abuser released and taunted her through window

A woman was forced to flee her home after a neighbour who sexually abused her was released - and would taunt her from his window.

Jessica Jones, 32, was just nine when a male family friend tried to rape her when he was babysitting her at his house.

The abuser Raymond Longstaffe had persuaded her mum to let Jessica and her brother stay the night.

He led Jessica into his bedroom, stripped off her clothes and attempted to rape her while threatening to kill her mother's partner if she told anyone what had happened.

Longstaffe was sentenced to eight months' prison at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court in 2003 and was registered as a sex offender for 10 years.

But after his release he moved back into his home opposite and would taunt Jessica and her family from his window - even pulling faces.

His presence forced Jessica and her family to move house and she later changed schools because she was so afraid he would find and harm her or her family.

Now, the mum-of-three from Powys, Wales, is waiving her anonymity to speak about her experiences for the first time and encourage other survivors to seek support.

She also revealed she had been the victim of an earlier assault, aged just six, when she was grabbed and pinned to the ground by an older boy who began taking off her clothes at a holiday park playground.

Speaking of the attempted rape, Jessica said: "My abuser got back to his house, which was opposite ours, so I thought he'd threaten us, and so we had to move house.

"He was in the window a lot of the time. If he saw my mum, he would pull a funny face and stick his tongue out. We moved schools, which I did feel a bit safer because he didn't know where I had moved to."

Jessica says the abuse she suffered as a young girl shaped her life, contributing to struggles at school, difficulties with relationships and years of poor mental health.

Describing the night she was sexually abused by the neighbour who had offered to babysit, Jessica said: "He was very persistent and said we would be fine, we could play games and reassured my mum that we would go to bed.

"I just remember him coming in and prodding me and pulling the duvet off me. I was just really confused, wondering why he wanted me to go with me in the middle of the night.

"He took my hand and dragged me out of the bedroom into his bedroom. He said, 'Get in the bed,' then he started talking to me. I was getting a bit scared because this had happened to me at six, so I was more aware.

"He told me that my pyjama bottoms were making his skin really itchy and asked if we could take them off, and I said no. He took my clothes off and put them in his bed, and I felt really awkward and embarrassed.

"He tried to rape be but I pushed him away. His genitals touched mine, and he tried to insert his penis. Somehow in my mind, I knew that it was wrong, so I pushed him away.

"My brother was sleeping in the room next door, and despite thinking that I could shout out of the window and run out of the door, I just couldn't do it with my brother asleep.

"I was more worried about my brother, and if I ran, he'd try to kill us. I just thought, 'I'd do what he asks me to do' so that we both stayed safe.

"He was saying, 'Make sure this is our secret, or I'll come and kill your mum's partner with a sledgehammer'. I remember I went back to my bedroom, and I just didn't go to sleep; I was so frightened."

The next morning Jessica told her mother what had happened.

"She screamed her head off, and all the neighbours came out wondering what was going on," she said.

"She rang the police, and they turned up. They arrested him."

Dyfed-Powys Police interviewed Jessica, who underwent a medical examination at hospital before later attending court proceedings.

Jessica said: "I was then taken to hospital and was examined. I remember nurses and doctors around me, and I felt really embarrassed. Court proceedings I had to go and attend those – that was very traumatic."

Jessica, who was breaking her silence to speak for the first time after more than 20 years, also recalled the earlier assault who had no further action taken against them.

She said she had wandered away while staying with her grandparents at a caravan park and was found by her grandmother with the boy on top of her before the abuse could go any further.

She added: "I remember this taller boy grabbing me and pinning me down on the floor. I just remember feeling scared; I was really confused.

"He started taking my clothes off. My nan must have wondered where I was, and she found me there on the floor with him on top of me. Luckily, she found me at the right time."

Jessica said she struggled throughout her teenage years and was eventually expelled in Year 10.

She said: "That was my way of asking for support. They just thought I wanted attention."

She sat her exams before working at a local pharmaceutical factory and later qualified as a hairdresser before moving between jobs.

The long-term impact of the abuse continued into adulthood.

Jessica added: "I went through a patch of not really caring about myself. I just went with very different partners. I did struggle with intimacy as well."

Jessica eventually met her husband, Tom Jones, while working back at the pharmaceutical company.

The couple went on to have three sons, but not before enduring five miscarriages between pregnancies.

Her first son was born in August 2017, her second in February 2020 and her third in July 2022.

During her third pregnancy, Jessica developed perinatal depression after becoming overwhelmed by fears of losing another baby.

"I went to my midwife appointment and just broke down in tears," she said.

“They diagnosed me with perinatal depression. I felt this heavy weight on my shoulders. I didn't feel like I was alive. I didn't feel any happiness at all."

Although she initially felt better after her son's birth, her mental health worsened again around 10 months later.

"I was having suicidal thoughts," she said.

“I would wake up in the morning and think, could it be nighttime again?"

Jessica sought help and eventually found somatic bodywork and EMDR therapy transformative in helping her process the trauma she had carried since childhood.

"Somatic bodywork helped me because I was having lots of nightmares and anxiety and couldn't sleep," she said.

"I started feeling a lot lighter. It was the most amazing thing that I'd ever found and done."

The experience inspired her to qualify as a somatic bodywork facilitator in July 2024.

She is now raising money for Rape Crisis and hopes her story will encourage other survivors to seek support. For so many years I felt like my family never wanted to speak about it, and I always felt shut down," she said.

"Because I struggled for such a long time, I understand why other survivors don't speak up because they feel this massive shame. When I was really struggling talking about it, I felt my throat would tighten and shut.

"I feel like I am now able to physically speak, and I just know there are so many other people this has happened to. I just want them to know that it's ok to speak."

She's raising funds for Rape Crisis here.

If you or someone you know is experiencing abuse in the UK, you can reach out to Victim Support, which operates a free and confidential 24/7 SupportLine and live chat service every day of the year, offering specialist support to anyone who has been a victim of crime or a witness: 0808 16 89 111