The Royal Court building

A 23-YEAR-OLD man who indecently assaulted a child has been jailed for nearly three years.

Ross Stratford (23) received two years and eight months in custody in the Royal Court yesterday after he admitted indecently assaulting the young girl.

He also pleaded guilty to the possession of three indecent photographs and two indecent films, all of which were stored on his laptop computer.

Crown Advocate Howard Sharp told the court that Stratford had downloaded indecent films and images for months before committing the assault in February this year.

He described the assault as ‘serious and prolonged’ and the ‘culmination of a growing interest in child pornography’.

Commissioner Julian Clyde-Smith said that the true impact of the assault was impossible to gauge as the child was still so young. He said that the court must act to protect children from sexual abuse and the sentence, recommended by the Crown, reflected the gravity of the offence even with mitigation.