Teacher blindfolded young boy and tied him to bed during ‘private lesson’ sex attacks

Teacher blindfolded young boy and tied him to bed during ‘private lesson’ sex attacks | Night News Editor Published July 29, 2026 2:57pm Updated July 29, 2026 2:57pm Deborah Franklin, 65, was found guilty at St Albans Crown Court of eight counts of indecency against a boy she tutored. (Picture: PA) A teacher has been convicted of tying a young boy to a bed, blindfolding him and committing ‘multiple sexual acts’ on him over three years. Deborah Franklin, 65, gained the victim’s parents’ trust to get access to his bedroom for private tutoring sessions. At St Albans Crown Court, she sat emotionless and pretended not to remember tutoring the then 9-year-old boy at all. But jurors heard that she took her clothes off in front of the boy, kissed him, got him to touch her and performed multiple sexual acts. She was caught by the victim’s sister under her brother’s covers during one of her lessons in the 1990s. Sign up for all of the latest stories Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens. Franklin, who was in her 30s and married at the time, was the boy’s private tutor and subjected him to ‘repeated sexual activity’, prosecutors told a trial at St Albans Crown Court. Franklin, of Radlett, Hertfordshire, had denied all the charges. Deborah Franklin blindfolded a young boy and tied her to his own bed (Picture: PA) The teacher at a preparatory school in Hertfordshire, was found guilty of eight counts of gross indecency against the boy during the 1990s while he was aged between nine and 12. The court heard that Franklin was regularly at the complainant’s house, with his sister telling jurors of the defendant: ‘She was fun, she was charismatic. I thought she was cool.’ The boy viewed her as ‘young’ and ‘high energy’, who ‘presented like a mate’ and spoke about drugs, cigarettes and sex, the court heard. Franklin was ‘trusted’ by the family to be in the boy’s room during tutoring sessions, prosecutor Gavin Pottinger said. But Franklin was a woman ‘whose boundaries were just not there’, Mr Pottinger added. The accuser said one sexual encounter took place in the garage at his house, when Franklin took off her clothes and asked ‘do you want to touch me?’, jurors heard. On another occasion, at her own house, Franklin tied him to her bed, blindfolded him and tickled him, the complainant said. The accuser said that during another sex act, Franklin called out her husband’s name. Jurors heard that the complainant alleged the defendant described herself as his ‘girlfriend’ but advised him to be discreet about others finding out. He said that he had ‘no memory of work ever being done’ during tutoring sessions, the court heard. Judge Kamran Choudhry, giving his legal directions to the jury, said that prosecutors said the accuser, now in his 40s, has ‘consistently recounted the substance of the allegations over many years to many people’. The complainant first reported the incidents to police in 2024, the court heard. The judge added that the defence’s case was that Franklin’s relationship with the boy was ‘entirely proper’ and not ‘unusually close and inappropriate’. Franklin, giving evidence, told jurors it was ‘quite common for teachers and parents and children to socially interact’. Mr Pottinger asked her: ‘Did you in fact remember (the boy) a good deal more than you are admitting to?’ The defendant replied: ‘No.’ Mr Pottinger asked: ‘You are choosing, still choosing, not to remember anything that happened in those years aren’t you?’ Franklin replied: ‘No.’ Defence barrister Aisling Byrnes asked the defendant if there was ‘any truth’ in the allegations that she sexually touched the boy during tutoring sessions. Franklin replied: ‘No.’ The defendant told jurors that it would not have been ‘unusual’ to be in a pupil’s bedroom or on their bed while tutoring them. Police received a report of the allegations in March 2024 and charged Franklin, who still worked as a teacher and home tutor, the same month. She was suspended by her school once they were made aware of the allegations. The defendant was remanded into custody and told by Judge Kamran Choudhry that she faces a ‘high possibility’ of being jailed at her sentencing on October 1. Arrow MORE: Your friend has committed sexual violence. What do you do now? Arrow MORE: Van drivers caught ‘harassing’ women by female police officers disguised as joggers Arrow MORE: Shabana Mahmood is wrong for trying deport the Rochdale grooming gang leader News Updates Stay on top of the headlines with daily email updates.