Married vicar with two daughters who baptised his congregation in the River Thames admits sending nude photos to ’13-year-old schoolgirl’
Rev Ben Lovell, a 44-year-old former vicar in Hampton, has admitted sending nude images and sexual messages on Snapchat to an undercover investigator he believed was a 13-year-old girl. He pleaded guilty to two offences, and the case is being sent to Crown Court because magistrates consider the offences serious enough to warrant longer sentencing powers.
The prosecution said the offences involved soliciting and sending sexual images, and indicated a likely sentence of 18 months to two years in prison. Lovell is married with two daughters and previously held roles at local schools; in 2018, he baptised six members of his congregation in the River Thames. He has been suspended from ministry, was granted conditional bail and is due back in court next month ahead of sentencing.
- Former vicar Ben Lovell admitted two online offences involving an undercover investigator.
- He believed he was communicating with a 13-year-old girl.
- The case will proceed to Kingston Crown Court for sentencing.
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Snapchat is a messaging app where people can send photos and messages that may disappear after they are viewed. In this case, the recipient was an undercover investigator posing as a 13-year-old girl; prosecutors said the messages and images were sexual.
Ben Lovell was a vicar in Hampton, south-west London, and had also held roles at local schools. He has admitted two offences, and has been suspended from ministry. The case is being sent from magistrates’ court to the Crown Court, which has greater sentencing powers for serious cases.