Ian Develin – Sheffield

A 64-year-old man has been sentenced for a series of indecent exposure offences in Sheffield’s Endcliffe Park

Ian Develin, of Rowan Road, Eckington, Sheffield, was caught by police officers through good old-fashioned police work after they received multiple reports of a man exposing himself in front of women and committing an indecent act.

After identifying a pattern in the offending within the reports, officers from the Sheffield Neighbourhood Crime Team launched a dedicated investigation and re-opened all previous reports of a similar nature.

Officers made house to house enquiries in the local area around the park, issued E-fit appeals, installed covert CCTV equipment and conducted uniformed and plain-clothes patrols.

They also briefed park rangers, response colleagues and community officers ensuring everyone was on alert.

In August 2025, we received a further report of a man exposing himself in the park.

Officers were deployed immediately and the quick-thinking victim was able to provide a partial registration plate for a car the suspect had used to flee the scene.

In liaison with council CCTV operators, alert officers were able to spot Develin’s car as it drove through Nether Edge. Develin was pulled over and arrested, but answered no comment in interview.

Officers then contacted the victims of the previous reported offences, and thanks to their help identifying him in an ID parade we secured multiple charges against him.

Develin pleaded guilty to six counts of indecent exposure between November 2024 and July 2025, one count of outraging public decency and one count of using threatening abusive insulting words or behaviour to cause harassment alarm and distress.

At Sheffield Crown Court on Tuesday (23 December), he was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison.