Dimitrious Tsarouchis promised never to behave in the same way again but his crimes only worsened
Dimitrious Tsarouchis, 24, of Balmoral Road, Fairfield(Image: Merseyside Police)
A guitar teacher invited a 15-year-old pupil to his home for a “jam” but instead sexually abused her. Dimitrious Tsarouchis “flattered” his victim by telling her that she was his “best student” before “manipulating and guilt tripping” her into engaging in sexual activity.
Having left the girl “shocked and distressed” after kissing and groping her, the aspiring music school owner promised never to behave in the same way again. Instead, his crimes only descended into serious sexual assaults and rape.
Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday, Tuesday, that Tsarouchis, of Balmoral Road in Fairfield, met the teenager through giving her guitar lessons, putting him in a “position of responsibility and a high degree of trust as a music teacher”. But this “teacher student relationship” was then said to have “moved beyond the professional setting and developed into a sexual relationship”, with the 24-year-old defendant having subjected the complainant to abuse on several occasions and even raped her following one tutorial.
Ken Grant, prosecuting, read a statement to the court on the girl’s behalf, saying: “What happened to me has affected me a lot, both mentally and physically. I feel overwhelmed most days. I feel on edge a lot of the time and find it hard to relax or feel safe.
“I feel very vulnerable. I don’t feel safe around adults like I used to. The whole process, especially the court case, was very overwhelming for me. The trial was one of hardest things I’ve ever had to go through. This has affected my whole family. I can see how upset they are. It makes me feel guilty, like it’s my fault.
“Before this happened, playing guitar was a big part of my life. I loved it and wanted it to be my future. Now I don’t enjoy it any more, because it reminds me of what happened. Most days, I feel anxious and low. I don’t enjoy things the same way and I don’t feel like myself any more.
“I don’t feel as confident as I used to, and I don’t feel like the same person any more. I want the court to understand how much this has affected me and how it has changed my life. What happened to me has taken away something I loved and made me feel unsafe and anxious every day.”
The teenager’s mum added in her own statement that the “impact on her daughter has been devastating” and said: “She cries most days and lives with ongoing anxiety and distress. She avoids certain places, because they trigger memories. It’s heartbreaking to see the impact of this trauma on both her physical and mental health.
“She was very talented at playing guitar. It gave her joy and confidence. Since what happened, she’s barely picked it up. Watching her lose that part of herself is incredibly painful.
“It feels like something precious has been taken from her. Nothing can undo what’s happened, but I want the court to understand that the effects of these offences are deep, long lasting and continue every day.”
Tsarouchis has no previous convictions. Nicola Daley, defending, told the court: “Your honour, the defendant is still, in my submission, a young man. I ask the court to take into account the fact that any prison sentence, for somebody of that age who has had no experience before of the criminal justice system, will have a marked impact on him and has been and will continue to be difficult, not only because of his age but because he is a foreign national and has his own vulnerabilities.
“He too is someone who has suffered with anxiety. In my submission, it is clear that he does understand the serious nature of this offending. He has described to medical staff it being the worst of the worst, him feeling shame and has additionally reported concern about the impact on others and his own family and bringing it upon them.
“He is particularly concerned that he may not get to see his elderly grandparents again, because of their health and where they live. He remains relatively immature for his age. He is somebody that has his neurodiversity, which caused him some difficulties as a child. He too speaks about being bullied and trying to stand up for himself and others around him.
“He has, since being remanded into custody, been positively engaging. He has been engaging with the mental health team and has been working in the prison, in particular in a workshop to give himself structure and to deal positively with the time that he is spending in custody.
“There are multiple references from friends, family friends and different family members. They each speak of the defendant as somebody who had aspirations to use his artistic and musical talents and, when his parents were struggling financially, to pay for his international studies, he obtained jobs, obtained his degree and his masters degree.
“He wished, previously, to set up his own centre to assist in teaching others, in terms of passing on his musical abilities. That is something that, at least in terms of anybody under the age of 18, he is unlikely to be able to do. This conviction puts an end to that. Notwithstanding that, he is adamant he is going to do his best so that, when he is released, he is able to put his life back on an even keel.”
Tsarouchis was found guilty of rape, assault by penetration, two counts of sexual activity with a child, inciting a child to engage in a sexual act and sexual communications with a child by a jury following a trial. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool with long brown hair and glasses and wearing a grey prison issue jumper, he was jailed for eight years.
Sentencing, Judge David Potter said: “You were her guitar tutor. You, then in your early 20s, were in a position of trust and responsibility towards a child who was then aged 15. There was clearly a disparity of age between you.
“At the time of the commencement of your relationship, she was legally and emotionally a child. The relationship between you and her developed, at your instigation and because of your sexual interest in this child, into a sexual relationship.
“You became a trusted member of the wider family and were invited into the home for guitar lessons. You quickly began to text and message her in a sexual nature. You progressively told her that you liked her and that she was your best student. She was initially flattered by the attention.
“Knowing that she was vulnerable, you, nonetheless, on the first occasion of sexual activity, kissed her repeatedly across the face and grabbed her bottom. The impact on her was immediate. She was shocked and distressed. You told her not to worry. She asked you, ‘this isn’t going to happen again, is it?’, to which you replied ‘no, it won’t’.
“But she described then an escalation of your behaviour towards her in the safety, for you, at least, of your home address during jam sessions, when she came to your home address with her guitar.”
After mentioning sexual acts that Tsarouchis carried out against the girl, Judge Potter said: “She told the police that she did not want to do any of this activity with you but wanted to remain friends with you.
“She understood that what was taking place was not right, and you manipulated her vulnerabilities. You yourself knew the impact of your offending even then, by saying that your conduct with her should remain your secret.
“Matters progressed to the most serious offence, that of rape. She indicated that she did not wish to, that she did not feel ready and that she was still a child.
“But, as a result of the grooming activities that you had been undertaking for several weeks, and guilt tripping her into thinking it was her fault if she resisted. She felt disgusted by that activity.
“It is clear that what happened to her over those weeks and months has affected her extremely deeply. At times, the anxiety has become overwhelming. She feels very vulnerable, feels very unsafe around familiar adults and has found the whole process overwhelming.
“Her mum also describes the greater devastation caused to the family by your offending. In her words, it is heartbreaking to see her daughter’s mental and physical health decline as a result of your interaction with her and is devastated, also, that the thing that gave her joy and confidence has been shattered. She rarely now picks up the guitar that she once treasured.
“You are a highly educated and highly intelligent young man. While you continue to deny your guilt, you understand the seriousness of the position that you are in. I accept that, in receiving an immediate and lengthy sentence of imprisonment, this will have a particular impact on you, because of your age, the fact that you are immature and also, of course, the nature of the offences for which you must be sentenced.
“I take into account that you yourself have issues with anxiety and you have used the time in custody to improve your mental health, and you have been working in the prison to give your life some structure and meaning. You appreciate that, by your actions towards her, your aspirations in music education are now seriously affected, and you are unlikely to be in a position to work with children and young people in the future.”
Tsarouchis was also handed a lifelong sexual harm prevention order and an indefinite restraining order. He will be required to sign the sex offenders’ register for life.
