Last week Wayne Domeney handed himself in – following two weeks on the run – after being found guilty of 13 sex offences against young children spanning a four-year period.
But his arrest and conviction were particularly shocking to Prince Charles, who entrusted the former paratrooper to train Prince William and watched him serve alongside Prince Harry during his service in Afghanistan.
Charles and Domeney, 51, met up on occasion throughout the disgraced soldier’s time with the army, even posing for photographs together – making the child rapist’s shocking crimes even more disturbing to the 69-year-old royal.
‘Domeney’s crimes have horrified Charles to the core, and he can’t believe this man from his past has caused so much pain and horror to so many lives,’ says a palace source. ‘Charles is horrified.
‘For many years he felt comfort in knowing that Domeney had trained and spent time with his sons in combat and at home, believing he was an exemplary soldier – now the thought of it just makes Charles feel sick. Even the fact that Domeney accompanied Princess Diana on her tour of Bosnia in 1997 is upsetting – such a breach of trust – when he has destroyed innocent lives.’
Camilla was reportedly so distraught over the drama she was reduced to tears.
Just last September, Domeney gave an interview about his close relationship with the royal family. The ex-soldier – whose career spanned 25 years and ended in 2009 when he was diagnosed with PTSD – boasted in particular about his nights out with Prince Charles after having met him during a Colours Parade.
‘He knew I was the boxing champ,’ Domeney told reporters. ‘I said, “We’ve got two pints of Guinness, will you toast the regiment?” So he stayed for a few pints.
‘We were joking about his posh voice so he put on a cockney accent. He was having a good time. I met him after at events and he always remembered me.’
The criminal also had ties with Princess Diana, after he escorted her through Bosnia as she visited minefields in 1997 – just three months before her tragic death.
Speaking of the time he spent with her, Domeney revealed that she was ‘very determined’ about her charity work and ‘wanted to know what it was really like’ in Bosnia – indicating that he had built up a rapport with her.
The convicted child rapist also commented on how ‘down to earth’ Prince William was, and revealed how he served alongside Prince Harry in Afghanistan – describing Harry as ‘one of the lads.’
‘Domeney’s arrest has really upset Wills and Harry,’ says a source. ‘It’s disgusting to think that someone they’ve spent so much time with can have such an evil, secret past.’
Domeney was found guilty of 13 offences at Birmingham Crown Court on February 2 after his trial went ahead without him.
The offences included four counts of rape of a young girl, intimidation of a witness, three counts of assaulting a young girl and three counts of sexual activity with a child.
Domeney had refused to front court, jumping bail and fleeing across the UK – resulting in a massive two-week manhunt after his conviction.
He finally handed himself into police on March 2, ending the high-profile search – news which would’ve come as a huge relief to Prince Charles.
‘It’s awful for Charles to be connected to someone capable of such heinous crimes,’ said a palace source.
‘This is causing him significant pain, and he’s followed this trial and manhunt with great interest – horrified that the man he trusted with his sons – and shared time with – could turn out to be so evil.’
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