A depraved boyfriend who encouraged his lover to have sex with their pet pug dog has been jailed for five-and-a-half years by a judge who said he "wallowed in a swamp of sexual depravity". Graham Marshall, 39, used a "level of coercion" to encourage Paige Reaney, 33, to engage in a range of sex acts with the pet named Charlie - but a court heard she still retained some culpability for what happened to the "poor, helpless creature".

Judge Jeremy Richardson KC branded the case the "worst" of its kind he had experienced in almost half a century of covering courts. Sheffield Crown Court heard how, between August 2019 and December 2022, on no fewer than five occasions, he helped Reaney, 33, have sex with the animal. Judge Richardson said: "The circumstances of this case are extremely disturbing.

"In a professional life in the law covering 45 years, I thought I had encountered most acts of depravity.

"This case is perhaps the worst example of a case of its kind that I have ever come across."

Reaney avoided jail with a nine-month suspended prison sentence after the Judge said Marshall's "perverted" sexual fantasies drove the abuse of the dog at their Sheffield home.

But he said to Reaney: "You never refused any of those requests."

The judge described how the pair shared vile images between themselves on TikTok.

Marshall described these as "so, so, f****** hot, it's amazing", while Reaney told him: "Wish I could have you right now."

The court heard Marshall called Reaney "mummy" when talking to the dog.

Judge Richardson said a vet concluded that Charlie would have been in distress and pain when he was forced to take part in the acts, which were outlined in detail in court.

Reaney admitted bestiality and animal cruelty at a previous hearing.

Marshall admitted the same charges, plus possessing child abuse images, possession of extreme pornography and voyeurism.

The judge decided Marshall was a dangerous offender and imposed an extended sentence, with a four-year extended licence period on his release.

He told him: "You have wallowed in the swamp of sexual depravity repeatedly, and over a long period."

Reaney and Marshall sat at opposite ends of the dock for the hearing. She sobbed throughout while he sat with his head in hands, visibly shaking at times.

The judge described how the offending came to light in August 2021 after police seized devices from the couple's home after receiving information about the possession of illegal images of children.

The judge said: "The simple fact is that you, Reaney, had many sexual encounters with that poor helpless creature which were all aided and abetted by you, Marshall.

"These shocking acts of bestiality were video recorded."

The judge told Reaney: "You were under a level of coercion to indulge in acts of bestiality.

"That conduct also included cruelty to an animal.

"Whilst I accept there was an element of coercion, you went along with what was happening in a number of occasions and you played your role to the full."

Judge Richardson said: "The dog has suffered due to the abuse of it by two human beings to a state of learned helplessness.

"It has thus suffered unnecessarily. Pain was also inflicted on the dog deliberately during these bestial acts.

The judged outlined how Marshall was in possession of abuse images of children as young as seven. He also admitted taking an indecent image of a child.

He said the voyeurism charge related to him installing a camera in a bathroom and recording unidentified women.

Judge Richardson told Marshall that he also accepted that he had "lost everything" and has been the "subject of vigilante abuse in social media".

But he added: "You cannot show your face anywhere and you have been living in a tent in the woods. You have been ostracised by your family."

He said that a pre-sentence report "highlights your obsession with sexual fantasies".

Judge Richardson told Marshall: "You have indulged in a vast array of different acts of sexual deviancy of a very serious kind."

He added: "You have deeply ingrained harmful sexual perversions within your character which embrace serious criminal conduct.

"I have every reason to believe there are acute risks of history repeating itself and you plunging yourself into the mire of criminal sexual depravity again."