Would you continue to see him if you found this out?

Why do you ask, @Highlightnight ? What are your own thoughts?

I used to lie about my age all of the time.

I know someone who had a ONS with a ‘woman’ he met in a nightclub for over 18s, she then later accused him of taking advantage as she was under 16. He was in a relationship and she was jealous.
He never asked her age as she was ‘obviously’ over 18 and had assumed the bouncers had checked her ID.

This alone would not make me stop seeing him. I would try and get the facts and like any man, keep an eye out for any other red flags.

Fuck no.

Think about it: If he knew her in the context of her actual life, he HAD to be able to assess her true age. Her class in school, her parents, her other friends, her hobbies and activities, etc. all would be a dead giveway that she wasn't 18 or 19.

So either he knew and didn't care, or he didn't really know her and was just shagging the first teen that would let him, in a car or the woods or wherever.

What does that say about him?

Obviously not.

I would walk away because of how unusual it was many years ago for a man of 20 to be convicted for having sex with a 15 year old.

When I was 15/16 it was accepted as almost normal that lots of girls would have boyfriends of 18-24.

To get to the point of conviction and getting a suspended sentence sounds like considerably more to it than having consensual sex with a 15yo he thought was older.

Even one of my teachers who had sex with a pupil only got a caution (and lost his job but went to work in a different school later!).

No even if it was years ago. Did he tell you?

People should be more careful sharing personal stories on a thread like this. I suspect it's someone purposefully fishing for such stories.

No. Do you really need to ask?

Except she was the only 19 year old that still had to go to secondary school…

This. You dont get to court and a suspended sentence for "consensual" or "mistaken age" sex with that age gap. For it to go to court the victim would have had to support prosecution, give evidence themselves AND there would have been corroborating additional evidence. Only 4% of such cases even make it to sentencing so for him to be one of them there is absolutely no way it will be however he has made it out to you.

How did it end up in court? And he got a suspended sentence?

I would say steer clear of this one. He sounds well dodgy.

It was pretty normal for 15 year olds to date older men when I was a teenager. I dated a 23 and a 21 year old at that age.
Its a different age now though so depends when it was I guess.

As an aside someone I know was in the same situation as the girl he was dating (he was 22) was 15 but he has met her in a nightclub and she said she was 19. They dated for a while before her parents found out and he was arrested. He genuinely had no clue and none of his friends questioned her age as she looked and acted much older than 15.

What is your own gut feeling about it

If he got a suspended sentence, then it suggests there's more to it than him 'thinking she was older', and he didn't do anything wrong. He must have been reported by someone too. With a suspended sentence I would imagine that the judge believed your boyfriend had prior knowledge, that he suspected she was underage or it was blindingly obvious.
Yes, some teens do look much older. My friend worked in a local hairdressers, along with another girl who was younger than us. This girl was a tall, willowy, pretty blonde and she was 15. She would get into clubs, drink in pubs with fake ID. A young lad used to come in the salon, he was around 20, training to be a PE teacher, and this girl fancied him and he liked her too - she'd told him she was 18. They went on a date, and she told him she was going on work experience the following week. He saw me and my friend in the street and asked us straight out 'How old is X, because she told me she's 18, yet she's going on work experience, it doesn't add up'. We were a bit hesitant, and he said 'Please tell me the truth, I'm training to be a PE teacher, it will destroy my career if she's underage'. My friend made excuses and left, but I told him the truth. He was very very thankful, but he said if she hadn't had made the slip up with the work experience, he may have never realised until too late. Nothing physical has taken place between them, because her slip up rang alarm bells for him. He was angry at the salon owner because she'd encouraged him to ask the girl out, knowing her employee was only 15!! This was back in the early 90s, when things like this happened a lot. Yes, it's not always obvious, as girls can appear mature. In the OP's situation, there's more to it, than her partner is saying.

That's because you were a silly, naive teenager. Any decent man would have asked you how old you are then told you to stick to the pimply youths in your class. Or maybe wait a few years until you're actually ready to have sex with a grown man.

Not many decent men around maybe, of course.

Imagine being a 23 year old woman and shagging a 15 year old boy.

No

especially many years ago when kids had less access to fillers, ultra hair bleach and tans that can make kids look older. even then...
Bin that man @Highlightnight

I have a DD who is 15. She is so precious, gorgeous, amazing looking, fun. Adores skincare, makeup, fashion. Probably looks older if you saw her in a photo.

HOWEVER: she has jellycat bunnies lined up above her bed. She fights with her little sister and plays house with her when they make up. She is nervous around adults. She is working hard towards her GCSEs.

The ‘looking older’ is a total facade. Anyone who spoke to her for more than 10 minutes would know she is a child. And I think this is true of any 15 year old.

No. I worked with someone years ago who disclosed a similar conviction - said he was late teens and she was his girlfriend a couple of years younger. Whoever interviewed him took him at his word and hired him. When his DBS came back he had multiple convictions for sex offences including raping a 15 year old girl at a bus stop when he was in his late 20s.

There was a conviction so that would lead me to believe there is more to the story than he is telling you.

What are your intentions for this relationship? If you are thinking the future could include starting a family together, please be aware there will be a case opened with social services to decide whether this man is a risk.

No way.

Yes poor guy. But you’re not going to report him to the police so he’s probably ok.

Consent doesn’t come into it when you’re a child. I’m sure you can appreciate why.

No , just the implications of dating a sexual offender would put me off let alone the rest of the doubts .

How do you know this? Because the OP says he said he thought she was older? For some reason…that’s just not enough for me. Still don’t want to date a convicted rapist. Gosh I’m just weird like that.

I don't know, I would absolutely hate to think the men I (consentingly) slept with when I was 15 and he was 22 was still being impacted by what we did almost 30 years ago. Seems a bit much to be honest. I don't look back and think "he was taking advantage of me" - I was in the pub, drinking beer and very happy to be out with him, sleeping with him etc.

If my parents had known I think my mum would have reported him though. So I'm glad she didn't.