A 36-year-old mother has been sentenced to four years in prison after having sex with two 13-year-old boys in her son’s bedroom while he was at school.
Natalie Harris began sending sexual messages to one of the students on Snapchat before inviting them both to her address.
In a “complete disregard for any moral compass”, the mother-of-six developed an “obsession with sex with young boys” and wanted “attention” following a break-up, a court heard.
Despite begging the boys to keep it a secret, she was arrested after a video of the threesome filmed by one of the boys circulated at her school.
Natalie Harris outside Portsmouth Crown Court. The 36-year-old has been sentenced to four years in prison
The mother of one of the 13-year-old boys told Portsmouth Crown Court that Harris had “taken her childhood away” (Photo: Portsmouth Crown Court)
Harris, from Waterlooville, Hampshire, wept in the dock on Thursday as she was sentenced to four years in jail after admitting four charges of engaging in sexual activity with a minor.
A mother of one of the 13-year-old boys told Portsmouth Crown Court that Harris had “taken her childhood away”.
Prosecutor Matthew Lawson said both boys, whose names cannot be released for legal reasons, were aged 13 at the time of the incident which took place in Waterlooville, near Portsmouth, in November 2022.
Mr Lawson told Portsmouth Crown Court: ‘The case came to light in January last year.
‘There was a video circulating around the school both boys attended.
‘Police received a call from a concerned parent showing an adult woman engaging in sexual activity with a child.’
The court heard that both boys initially denied their involvement before one of them eventually told his mother.
Lawson said Harris was identified as the woman in the video by her distinctive hand tattoos.
The police confiscated her phone and found a ‘message thread’ between her and one of the boys, who she had saved in her contacts as Rachel.
She was heard telling him that he “shouldn’t tell anyone” because he could go to prison.
Telling the court how the boy came forward to tell his mother he had been the one who had taken the video, Mr Lawson said: ‘He said that in November 2022, around the time of the World Cup, the defendant had started messaging him on Snapchat and by text.
‘She said the messages turned sexual and she invited both boys to her house.
‘Both boys were clear that they were going there to have sex.’
The court heard that when they arrived at the address, Harris took them to her son’s bedroom, where they had sex for about 40 minutes and left before her own son returned from school.
She was arrested and initially claimed to “not know” who the woman in the video was.
In a victim impact statement read to the court, the boy’s mother who came forward said she had seen her son “fade away” as a result of the “terrible nightmare”.
She added that her “poor boy” has lost interest in several hobbies and as a result is now staying at home.
“It breaks my heart. I couldn’t imagine this would happen to my son. He’s a child,” she said.
‘Natalie has completely revolutionized our family.
‘The worst thing about all this is that she has taken away his childhood and I will never forgive her.
“He will never get back the childhood that was taken from him. This will stay with us for the rest of our lives.”
Harris, who has since been diagnosed with bipolar and multiple personality disorder, was reported to be suffering from a “manic episode.”
In mitigation, criminal barrister Berenice Mulvanny said Harris was “deeply remorseful” and “devastated” by her behaviour.
She said this had been “triggered” by a breakup with her partner.
Harris was reported to be suffering from a “manic episode” after splitting up with her partner.
Commenting on Harris’ split from her partner, Judge Sarah Munro KC said: ‘You reacted to her departure in a dramatic way.
‘In your behavior you became extremely promiscuous.’
He said there was a “dramatic change” in Harris’s mood that included “an obsession with having sex with young boys.”
“The boy described how you began messaging him and invited him to your home,” she said. “You took them into your son’s bedroom and had sexual intercourse with both boys.
“They left because it was time for their son to come home from school.”
Of the boy who reported the incident, she said: “The impact it has had on him has been terrible. He feels guilty about what happened. Clearly they have turned that family upside down and robbed him of his childhood.”
Sentencing her, he continued: “No sentence I can pass can give her back her childhood or repair the damage that has been done to her.”
The judge said the trigger for the “manic episode” that resulted in “erratic behavior” was her separation from her partner.
“You felt unloved and began acting out to get attention,” he added. “In your desire for attention, you did not take into account the long-term negative impact this would have on these young people.”
‘There was significant planning and grooming conduct on your part, a serious breach of trust and a very significant age disparity.’
He added that there had been a “complete disregard for any moral compass” and jailed her for four years.
Harris was also made the subject of a ten-year restraining order and a sexual harm prevention order of the same length.
