http://www.thisisexeter.co.uk/courts/Paedophile-jailed-sex-attack/article-2697539-detail/article.html

Paedophile is jailed for sex attack on teenager in Tiverton

JAILED: Andrew Street
A PAEDOPHILE with a history of committing sex offences has been jailed after pushing an underage teenager off her bicycle and sexually assaulting her.

Andrew Street, who police say is known locally as Jake, 40, of Penny Moor, Tiverton, was sent to prison for 18 months at Exeter Crown Court yesterday.

The girl, who knew him, managed to fight him off and found the courage to tell her family, after the incident in the town last year.

When police arrived at his home, his computer was in use and he was viewing a pornographic website with a title referring to teenagers.

Analysis showed he had used a pornographic search phrase including the word 'young', on his computer.

He has not been charged with any offence relating to his computer use.

Street, who has a history of sex offending and domestic violence, had also been looking at the alleged victim's innocent photographs on a social networking website the month before.

He had also been looking at other innocent photographs of other schoolgirls on the web on the day of the alleged offence.

He was convicted of sexual assault at a trial earlier this year after telling the court that he saw the girl, who was under 16, but did not touch her.

At the latest hearing, prosecutor Mary McCarthy said: "Quite out of the blue, he followed her as she was riding around on her bike. He grabbed hold of the handlebars so she fell to the ground and sexually assaulted her with his hands.

"She wriggled herself free which brought him to a stop and she cycled off."

The jury had also been told about a different girl, who was 16 when Street gave her a lift and then allegedly sexually assaulted her at Tiverton canal, although he was not charged with any offence.

He has a previous conviction for indecently assaulting a woman in her 20s, while giving her a lift. He rugby-tackled her to the ground and touched her when she tried to run away after he made unwanted advances.

He also has a criminal record for violence against two women.

Defence counsel Fiona Elder said the public would be best protected by Street being given a community order as it would enable him to have supervision and potential rehabilitation work.

Judge Graham Cottle said Street remained in denial about his interest in young girls and a community order was not appropriate.

He told the defendant: "It was an enormously frightening experience for this girl. She trusted you… she was shocked and terrified but the next morning she did the right thing (by telling her family)."

He added: "It's quite clear you were building yourself up to commit an offence against this child. I'm quite satisfied that you are extremely capable of very risky behaviour to young children."

Judge Cottle imposed a Sexual Offences Prevention Order until further notice and told Street to put his details on the Sex Offender Register for the next ten years.

Read an interview with the detectives in the case in tomorrow's Echo.