Stockport husband swingers site case: nine men on trial 2026

Key Points

• An elderly man from Stockport in his sixties pleaded guilty of more than 60 sexual assaults on his wife during 2004 and 2025, including rape as well as the administration of drugs to render her unconscious.
• According to the prosecuting authorities, since at least 2023, the man used FabSwingers and other online platforms to reach out to men who would join him and the wife in the house when she was unconscious.
• Nine men are being tried at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court for either participating in or instigating the sexual exploitation of the woman. The nine accused plead not guilty to the charges against them.
• Seven of the defendants have been charged with “contact” offences at the home address; two are facing non-contact conspiracy offences.
• Four additional men were found guilty of various sexual offences committed against the same woman as the ones in the case and will be sentenced along with the husband in a later hearing.
• As per the prosecution case, the husband made use of a “cocktail of stupefying drugs” and shared videos and pictures of the exploitation to men on online forums.
• The case was revealed when undercover German journalists infiltrated a Telegram forum in October 2025 and police later searched the husband’s phone where they recovered more than a million photographs and videos.
• During the case, the prosecutor informed the jury that one defendant sent messages to the husband asking him to delete the images mentioning “the guy in France,” to which prosecutors say refers to Dominique Pelicot.
• The ongoing trial before the jury in Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court could take up to three months.
• The identity of the alleged victim is legally protected and the husband cannot be named.

Stockport (Manchester Mirror) November 07, 2026 — A Stockport husband used the swingers website FabSwingers to recruit men allegedly involved in the sexual abuse of his wife while she was drugged and unconscious, Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court has heard. The man, who cannot be named to protect his wife’s legal right to anonymity, has admitted more than 60 offences committed against her between 2004 and 2025.

As reported by The Observer, the husband is expected to give evidence against nine men currently on trial for allegedly taking part in or encouraging the abuse. The prosecution says the husband began inviting strangers into the family home from at least 2023, after creating an anonymous profile on FabSwingers.

The nine defendants, aged between 28 and 70, deny all allegations. They include a football coach, a paramedic and a dog walker, according to The Observer.

What has the husband admitted?

The husband, from Stockport, has pleaded guilty to 62 offences against his wife, according to the BBC. The alleged abuse began in 2004 and continued until 2025.

Prosecutor Louise Oakley KC told the jury that the husband admitted using a “cocktail of stupefying drugs” to abuse his wife over decades. The court also heard that he shared videos and photographs of himself raping and sexually assaulting her with “like-minded” people he met through online forums.

The woman, who is in her sixties, is said to have become aware that she may have been a victim of sexual offences only after police arrested her husband. The Observer reported that she had no prior knowledge of the alleged offending.

The husband is in custody. He and four men who have already pleaded guilty to offences against the same woman are due to be sentenced at a later date.

How was the alleged abuse discovered?

The prosecution says the case came to light after undercover journalists in Germany infiltrated a Telegram group in October 2025. The group allegedly contained images of women who appeared to be unconscious being abused.

Police subsequently seized the husband’s mobile telephone. The court heard that officers found more than a million photographs and videos of his abuse.

As reported by the BBC, the husband had used websites including FabSwingers, Telegram, Skype and WhatsApp to contact other people. Prosecutors allege that he connected with at least 13 men who shared an interest in abusing an unconscious woman.

The BBC reported that the husband had expressed an interest in involving other men for years before he began inviting them to the couple’s home in 2023.

What role is FabSwingers alleged to have played?

FabSwingers is alleged to have been one of the platforms through which the husband contacted men. The prosecution says he used an anonymous profile on the site and invited men to the home he shared with his wife.

According to The Observer, the website is believed to be the UK’s most popular swinging site and claims to have more than 300,000 daily users. The report said that FabSwingers does not require users to verify their identity when creating an account.

The BBC reported that the site had been mentioned in at least 329 crime reports since 2023, including allegations of serious sexual offences. The Observer stated that there is no suggestion that the website was responsible for the alleged crimes.

The allegations concern the conduct of individuals who allegedly used the platform, rather than any allegation that FabSwingers itself committed or facilitated criminal acts.

Which men are on trial?

Seven men are accused of alleged “contact” offences involving entry to the victim’s home. They are Robert Stewart, 70, of Stockport; Philip Wild, 58, of Stockport; Jordan Wallace, 31, of Manchester; Jonathan Kirk, 43, of Stockport; Alan Keelan, 42, of Manchester; Richard Townsend, 37, of Heywood, Greater Manchester; and Mohammed Sabir, 28, of Cheadle, Stockport.

All seven deny the charges.

Two further defendants, David Graves, 60, of Ilkeston, Derbyshire, and Daniel Rayner, 42, of Whitstable, Kent, deny alleged “non-contact” offences. These include conspiracy to rape, conspiracy to assault by penetration and conspiracy to administer a substance with intent.

The BBC described the alleged contact defendants as including a taxi driver, a recruitment agency worker, a building supplies employee, an industrial cleaning worker, a retiree, a sheet metal worker and a senior paramedic.

What did prosecutors allege about individual defendants?

Prosecutor Louise Oakley KC told the jury that Philip Wild connected with the husband on FabSwingers. She alleged that, on 21 August 2023, the husband told Wild that his wife was “out of it” and invited him to attend their home.

The BBC reported that Wild and Mohammed Sabir are alleged to have met the husband through FabSwingers and to have sexually abused his wife during a single night in early 2025 after being invited to the address. Both men deny the allegations.

The court heard that Sabir was allegedly encouraged by the husband to leave a review on FabSwingers “like you do on Tripadvisor” after allegedly raping the woman. Sabir denies rape and conspiracy to rape.

The Manchester Evening News reported that jurors were shown online usernames allegedly used by several defendants on swingers’ chat rooms. The report said Robert Stewart’s username was “sexy roberto 1956”, Philip Wild’s was “peachy ass 2”, Sean Peers’s was “420Friendly422”, Mohammed Sabir’s was “kashmirispice” and Jordan Wallace’s was “Kinkymofo99”.

These usernames were reported as evidence heard by the jury. They are allegations put before the court and do not establish guilt against any defendant.

Why was Dominique Pelicot mentioned?

The prosecution alleges that one of the men on trial messaged the husband and told him to “delete all images” because of “the guy in France”. The Observer reported that prosecutors said this was a reference to Dominique Pelicot, the former husband of Gisèle Pelicot.

Gisèle Pelicot’s case involved her former husband drugging and raping her and inviting dozens of men to abuse her. The reference was made in the context of the prosecution’s account of messages allegedly exchanged between the husband and a defendant.

The Mirror reported that prosecutor Louise Oakley told the court the reference was to “the man in France who had been raping his wife – a lady by the name of Gisèle Pelicot”.

The mention of the French case does not mean the defendants on trial in Manchester have been found responsible for any offence connected with it. It was cited by the prosecution as part of its case concerning alleged messages and conduct.

What have the men who pleaded guilty admitted?

Four men have already pleaded guilty to offences against the same woman at earlier hearings. They are Sean Peers, 38, of Stockport; Keith Fotheringham, 59, of Dundee; Karl Lindsay, 56, of Taunton, Somerset; and Graham Brougham, 74, of Northwich, Cheshire.

They are due to be sentenced alongside the husband at a later date. The husband is in custody.

The nine men currently on trial deny the allegations against them. The trial is expected to last up to three months.

What happens next in the trial?

The jury at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court will hear the prosecution’s case against the nine defendants. The husband is expected to give evidence as part of that process.

The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until the jury finds them guilty beyond reasonable doubt. The allegations are contested, and all nine men deny the charges.

The trial is expected to run for up to three months. Sentencing for the husband and the four men who have pleaded guilty will take place after the proceedings conclude.

Background of the development

The case concerns allegations that a Stockport husband drugged and sexually abused his wife over more than two decades, then allegedly used online platforms to recruit other men to take part in abuse while she was unconscious. The husband has admitted 62 offences, while the nine men on trial deny all charges.

The investigation followed the infiltration of a Telegram group by undercover journalists in Germany in October 2025. Police then seized the husband’s phone and recovered more than a million images and videos.

The prosecution says FabSwingers was used from at least 2023 to contact men. The site has not been accused of wrongdoing in relation to the case.

Prediction: how this development can affect the audience

For readers in Greater Manchester and across the UK, the trial may increase attention on how online platforms can be used to connect people with harmful intentions. The case may prompt discussion among users of dating, swinging and private messaging services about identity verification, reporting mechanisms and the risks of arranging meetings with strangers.

For victims and survivors of domestic or sexual abuse, the proceedings may reinforce the importance of confidential support and police reporting routes. The fact that the alleged victim learned of the alleged abuse only after her husband’s arrest may encourage people to seek advice if they have concerns about unexplained injuries, memory loss, coercive control or sexual conduct they did not consent to.

For policymakers and platform operators, the case may add to scrutiny of anonymity, moderation and safeguarding practices on adult-oriented websites and encrypted messaging services. The court has heard that FabSwingers does not require identity verification, although the reporting makes clear that no allegation of responsibility has been made against the platform itself.

For the people of Stockport, the trial is likely to remain a significant local criminal case while it continues. Its outcome will depend on the evidence heard in court and the jury’s verdict, rather than on allegations reported before the trial ends.