Disgraced Guernsey politician and pastor jailed for 9 years

Disgraced Guernsey politician Jonathan Le Tocq will be imprisoned for 9 years for sexual offences.

For the first time in court today (26 January), we heard in detail the 'abhorrent' crimes committed by Jonathan Le Tocq.

Court heard that for nine years, Le Tocq used social media to play out a series of sexual fantasies.

Today we learnt the victims were primarily people known to him.

He would download photos from social media and use Artificial Intelligence applications to remove their clothing and pose them sexually.

When sharing these images online, Le Tocq would caption them, either pretending to be them or fabricating sexual scenarios involving him.

Victim statements read in court all echoed the same trauma response to hearing their likeness has been used in this way.

They described feeling “psychologically raped”.

Many now dealt with feelings of paranoia and anxiety, questioning who had seen these pseudo-images.

Le Tocq’s defence advocate stood and said he accepts full responsibility for his actions, accepting that they were “debauched” and “abhorrent”, and risked undermining the church and States.

A psychological report found Le Tocq was not exposed to abuse of any kind as a child, had no mental diagnosis or personality disorder.

He denies his actions ever sexually aroused him and denies being sexually attracted to children.

It was suggested he had a compulsive porn addiction and was intrigued by the reaction of people who had been sexually abused.

His defence advocate said there was not a high risk of Le Tocq re-offending, and since his arrest, he had experienced a “deep state of remorse and regret”.

She said his early guilty plea and cooperation, providing passwords for devices and accounts, saved investigating officer time and spared victims from an elongated case, and this should be considered before his jail sentence was announced.

In court, Le Tocq sat behind the glass with his head down, seemingly taking notes. He was still wearing his wedding ring, although the court said his wife was seeking a divorce.

Timeline

In June 2025, Jonathan Le Tocq, a long-standing Guernsey politician, church pastor, and grandfather, was re-elected to the States.

He received more than 8,000 votes, making him the ninth most popular candidate.

He failed to regain the role of Chief Minister, which he had held from 2012 to 2016, but was reappointed as lead for external relations.

The role, within the island's most powerful political committee, Policy and Resources, was one he had held for several years and involved travelling to the UK and further afield to represent the island.

On 21 July 2025, just over a month after the election, the 61-year-old was arrested on suspicion of telecommunications offences.

Subsequent investigations and searches of his devices revealed offences including sending indecent messages, making and sharing pseudo-indecent images of children, and possessing extreme pornographic material.

He was charged with making more than 2,000 images, more than 200 of which were in the most serious 'Category A'.

Le Tocq has been on remand in prison since August, and tendered his resignation as a member of Policy & Resources in September.

On 4 December 2025, in Guernsey's Royal Court, Le Tocq pleaded guilty to all 15 charges against him.  He subsequently resigned as a States member, forcing a by-election which is expected to take place later this year.

Senior politician Lindsay de Sausmarez, president of Guernsey's Policy and Resources Committee, described his offending as 'heinous' and 'devastating'

"I am so heartbroken for the people who are affected by this. Most importantly, the victims, but also his family and his church community.

"People's lives have been turned upside down by this, and other people are really angry, and understandably so.”

Today (26 January 2026), Le Tocq has been sentenced to 9 years.

Police Statement

Superintendent Liam Johnson of Guernsey Police spoke outside Police Headquarters in St Peter Port shortly after the sentence was delivered.

He said the High Tech Crime Unit carried out a complex investigation, analysing more than one million images found on Le Tocq’s devices - around 2,500 of which were categorised as indecent images of children.

"Guernsey Police is working hard to ensure it is ready to tackle the emerging criminiality that the development of AI had brought with it. We are already working with Home Affairs to ensure our legislation is fit for purpose."