A millionaire philanthropist who called himself ‘Boss Man’ will die in jail for drugging and raping victims on camera after police found footage of the attacks hidden in a mints tin and charged him with 92 offences.
Retired Ian Elliott, 71, from Pulborough in West Sussex – described by victims as a monster who ruined lives – was this afternoon sentenced to 23 years behind bars.
Hove Crown Court heard how he drugged, raped and filmed his attacks on teenagers and young men over decades.
Some of the men, all in their late teens or early 20s, had no idea what Elliott had done to them until they were contacted by police.
Hours of video were only discovered after Elliott – who will be at least 83 before being eligible to apply for parole – tried to get a friend to dispose of a tin for mints which was instead full of memory cards from his cameras.
Millionaire Ian Elliott, 71, drugged, raped and filmed his attacks on teenagers and young men
The retired businessman, from Pulborough in West Sussex, referred to himself as ‘Boss Man’ – with the nickname ‘Boss’ emblazoned across one of his tracksuit tops seized by police
Elliott tried to hide films showing his sex attacks on cards he stashed in a mints tin
His prison phone call while on remand was played to the court, with Elliott heard insisting he needed the tin to be gone.
Another 75 charges followed after the cards were handed to police – and now video footage has been released showing the sex offender at his countryside home.
Elliott pleaded guilty late last year to 43 charges include rape, sexual assaults, ABH, drug possession and attempting to pervert the course of justice.
Judge Jeremy Gold told Elliott he showed no remorse or empathy towards the four men who he groomed and abused over a 12-year period.
The judge said this afternoon: ‘You would systematically abuse them and video record your abuse.
‘In some cases, they were so intoxicated they would not realise or remember the sexual indignities they were subjected to.’
Elliott admitted 11 rapes, one attempted rape, six more sexual assaults, 17 counts of voyeurism, one ABH, possession of drugs and attempting to pervert the course of justice.
He hung his head in the dock at Hove as the judge sentenced him.
Mr Gold said: ‘It is apparent from all the material, they would be retained by straps and you have a sexual fetish for riding boots worn by the young man you were abusing, yourself or both.
‘This must have been profoundly shocking for them. Recording of your offending gave you the opportunity to watch again for your own sexual gratification.
‘This was a campaign of degrading and abusive offending over a 12-year period.’
The judge described how Elliott was obsessed with riding boots while also referring to himself as ‘Boss’ and encouraging his victims to call him ‘Boss’ or ‘Boss Man’.
All the time he was carrying out his campaign of rape, Elliott was a pillar of the community who funded local sports clubs and a cricket pavilion.
The married father-of-two turned rooms above the garages at his rural Sussex mansion into a home studio he called The Penthouse.
In more than 90 hours of video recordings, Elliott carried out violent sexual abuse and rapes of men – often involving riding boots, straps and a wetsuit.
The tycoon edited the films, rewatching his attacks, Hove Crown Court heard.
Descriptions of his horrific video collection were read out in silence, with the clips too disturbing to play in open court.
When his victims were able to cry out in pain or tell Elliott to stop, their pleas were ignored, prosecutor Rachel Beckett said.
Elliott, who made his money building an office supplies company in Sussex, lavished money, trips and gifts on the men he abused.
He groomed them with foreign holidays, trips in his helicopter and on board his boat as well as providing cash and nights out.
The final indictment against him had 92 charges including 11 rapes, sexual assaults, actual bodily harm, drug possession and attempting to pervert the course of justice.
Police found more than 90 hours of video and hundreds of thousands of pictures on Elliott’s computers and storage devices.
He initially denied anything had happened in his ‘Penthouse’, only changing his position when confronted with his own recordings.
Ms Beckett told how Elliott carried out a campaign of rape between 2008 and 2023, subjecting his victims to degradation and humiliation.
They are seen in the video footage in riding boots with their arms bound, while in some videos Elliott dresses them in a wetsuit.
Elliott was charged with 92 offences in total after investigators found footage he recorded
Elliott has been jailed for life after being tried at Hove Crown Court 92 sex offence charges
Most of his victims had no idea what had happened to them.
Elliott used a variety of drugs on his victims and kept a sharps box in The Penthouse for used needles.
The last sexual assault was an anal rape in June 2017 when Elliott was 64.
An expert described his victims In many of the recordings as being almost comatose.
Ms Beckett said: ‘The numerous videos of the men being sexually assaulted and raped are distressing to watch. At times, one victim is asleep and snoring.
‘At times, he is conscious but not coherent and appears not to understand where his is. He is clearly in pain on some occasions when he is penetrated by the defendant.’
Elliott had a camera set up on a tripod in The Penthouse and used straps to bind his victims while they were wearing riding boots.
Ms Beckett added: ‘The defendant was well known with in the village of Wisborough Green and its community.
‘He was the chairman of the Wisborough Green Sports Association between 2012 and 2018 and then Treasurer until 2020.
‘He took a leading role in the running of the Association and effectively ran the adjoining Pavilion and social club which played a key role in the community.’
Elliott used money made from his office supplies empire to build his penthouse, having sold his business in 2019 when it was valued at £3million.
His victims now say they want the local community to know how evil Elliott was.
One man, who read his statement to the court in person, said: ‘There are years I will never get back.
‘This monster was not the man we all believed him to be. I still, and will be for a long time, be picking up the pieces of his mess.
‘I suffer from nightmares and I long for the day this case is not consuming my brain and we can live a normal life.
‘I don’t remember what happened and I did not consent to it – if that’s not abuse, I don’t know what is.
‘Not only is he a rapist, sexual abuser and liar, he is a con artist and a monster.’
In a second victim statement, another man said his life would never be the same after being told Elliott abused him while he was unconscious.
He said: ‘I was drugged and sexually assaulted. It has made me feel less of a man – everyone says I’m brave, but I’m still embarrassed.
‘I don’t know what other people know or are thinking about me or the case.
‘The other victims are some of the strongest, mentally, men I know.
‘I keep blaming myself. I’m just glad I was able to stop another boy from getting drugged and sexually assaulted or worse.
‘At least there will be justice and the community will know the truth about who he is and what he does – now he’s caught and can’t do more horrific things, the public will know how evil he really is.’
More victims have been identified and police are hopeful they will come forward following Elliott’s conviction.
Speaking after today’s verdict, Sussex Police’s Safeguarding Investigations Units head Miles Ockwell said: ‘Today’s sentence means that Ian Elliott will spend a significant amount of the rest of his life in prison.
‘This is the only appropriate outcome given the multiple lives he has ruined as a result of his relentless campaign of sexual abuse, hidden behind the façade of a trustworthy pillar of his local community.
‘I want to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the bravery of Elliott’s victims who came forward to help us bring him to justice. They will live with the effects of the horrendous abuse they have suffered for the rest of their lives.
‘Today, Elliott had the chance to show genuine remorse to his victims in court. – instead, through his Counsel, despite saying that he acknowledges the harm he has done he sought to pass the blame from himself onto them.
‘Elliott is not sorry for what he did – he is just sorry that he got caught.
‘Despite a wide-ranging, complex police investigation, we cannot be sure that there are not other unidentified victims of abuse perpetrated by Elliott and I would encourage anyone who does think that they have been a victim to contact police.’