Gemma Barker wanted to be the 'perfect boy' for each of her victims

**Marv** · March 5th, 2012, 09:31 AM

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...alf-years.html

A young woman was today jailed for two-and-a-half years for fooling her own female friends into dating her - by dressing as a boy.

Gemma Barker, then 19, led a double life, secretly dressing in male clothing and adopting a deeper voice so she could enjoy 'kissing, cuddling and sexual touching' with her 15 and 16-year-old victims.

She began the deceit on Facebook, which she used to produce fake profiles before luring the girls.

She then showed up to the illicit rendezvous wearing baggy clothes and hats to hide her true identity, Guildford Crown Court heard.
[...]

Her cover was only blown when one of the girls noticed that her 'boyfriend' looked striking similar to the boy her friend was dating.

Barker, now 20, of Staines, Middlesex, was told by Judge Peter Moss that she would be in custody for the first half of the term and serve the remainder on licence.

The judge said Barker had admitted that the relationships included kissing, cuddling and sexual touching, adding: 'Nothing that you have ever said to any expert or the police sheds any light on, or provides any understanding of, your motivation for these offences.
[...]

She had previously admitted two counts of sexual assault and one of fraud. The offences took place between November 23 2009 and May 10 2010.

She received 30-month terms for the sexual assaults and three months for the fraud, the sentences to be concurrent.
[...]

He said it was important to stress that Barker’s deliberate deceitfulness and her disguise were so convincing they fooled not only the victims but their families and friends and also experienced police officers.
[...]

She had committed repeated sexual assaults - up to 20 on one girl, by pretending to be a boy, and perhaps half that number on the other girl, using two more male disguises.

The fraud count related to her having tried to get compensation for having been assaulted and seriously injured by one of her fictitious characters, Luke Jones.

During the hearing, Barker's barrister, Chetna Patel, referred to probation and psychological reports which found she suffers from autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, commonly known as ADHD.

'Miss Barker struggles to understand the motives and the intentions of others,' she said, telling the court that her client wanted to become 'the perfect boy' for each of the victims.
[...]

He added: 'The psychological damage to these innocent young women is self-evident.'

One said in an impact statement: 'Nobody understands what it's like to be told that the person you love and want to spend the rest of your life with is not real.

'I just want to stop hurting.

'What did I ever do wrong to you?

'I felt repulsive and dirty, it made me angry, I wanted to kill myself, because I couldn't cope.'

Both victims failed to achieve their GCSE expectations.

'You have adversely touched their lives,' the judge told Barker.

**CbabyRKO** · March 5th, 2012, 10:14 AM

She better be glad she didn't do this in the States otherwise her ass would have gotten a heck of a lot more time than 2yrs. I wonder why she victimized her friends instead of finding a nice girl to make kissy face with? She had to have known this wouldn't end well. But I'm sure she had this love conquers all attitude about it and thought that when the time came to reveal her secret they wouldn't care that it was there BFF that they had their first experiences with. I just made myself gag. Poor girls I hope they can get over this and learn to live healthy productive lives with a partner of their choosing.