Description
The "danger to women" pretended to comfort the child just after she had been sick then raped her
A predatory paedophile raped a little girl who had just been sick when he was pretending to comfort her.
Philip Jones was branded a "danger to women" after he made thousands of searches on internet rape sites, then spiked a victim's drink.
The former soldier was caught by a doorman at a Wirral pub putting powder into a woman's drink so he could sexually assault her in 2013.
Jones, who also downloaded child sex abuse images, was jailed for five years, with an extended three years on licence, in 2014.
Last December he was sent back to prison for hiding a mobile phone from police, after secretly working as a maintenance man in family homes.
But today it emerged that the 59-year-old had also raped and molested a little girl prior to his arrest in 2013.
That abuse only came to light when the child revealed last May that she had been living with the trauma for nearly a decade.
She sat with her mum holding her hand at Liverpool Crown Court this afternoon, when Jones was produced on a video link from prison.
Eric Lamb, prosecuting, said: "She explained that she wanted to disclose the offending for several years and she felt the burden of carrying the secret.
"The defendant told her she must not say anything to her mother and she was scared of being reprimanded so chose to say nothing.
"But it had been on her mind for many years and she said she wanted to 'get this off my chest'."
The court heard the girl was "confused" when first sexually assaulted by Jones and on a second occasion she had just vomited.
Jones pretended to comfort the child but raped her, when she cried and said he was hurting her, so he stopped.
Mr Lamb said Jones also raped her on another occasion and in a fourth incident he performed a sex act on her.
When interviewed last July, he gave a prepared statement and denied any of the abuse.
However, after several court hearings, Jones pleaded guilty to two counts of rape and two counts of sexual assault.
The girl said at first she didn't want to write a victim statement and just wanted to concentrate on her education.
Summarising a statement, Mr Lamb said she worried about "everyone at school" finding out what happened.
He said if the girl smelled the same body wash that Jones wore, memories of her abuse came flooding back.
Sometimes if stressed she said it would "pop into her mind" and she would start crying.
The girl said: "It makes me feel really sad."
The victim added she was "confused and scared" because Jones told her not to tell anyone.
Jones, of Poulton Road, Seacombe, and formerly of Trafalgar Road, Birkenhead, has previous convictions including wounding in 1990.
He became a HGV driver after leaving the Army and in 1996, for a sexual offence now classed as rape, he was jailed for three and a half years.
Jones targeted the 24-year-old woman at The Tap in Charing Cross, Birkenhead in February 2013, using nitrazapam - prescribed for insomnia and related to date rape drug Rohypnol.
When the then 52-year-old's computer was seized and examined, 183 indecent images of children were found, along with extreme porn.
He had searched the internet using the term "date rape" on 52 occasions and visited a rape site 23,500 times.
Jones admitted administering noxious substances for facilitating sexual activity and 15 offences involving downloading and possessing indecent images and extreme porn.
He was jailed for 20 months in December for failing to comply with the notification requirements of the Sex Offenders Register and breaching a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO).
Police raided his home on November 4, when they found a secret phone hidden behind a kitchen cupboard.
He has since been recalled on the licence of his 2014 sentence, which isn't due to expire until June 2022.
Rebecca Smith, defending, today said Jones accepted he would receive a long prison sentence.
She said: "He understands the difficulties, embarrassment, the distress and the misery his offending has caused."
Ms Smith added: "He knows now that his behaviour on these occasions was selfish and he hadn't considered the wider impact of his behaviour."
The barrister said Jones had undertaken courses to address his offending, recognised the "demons" he had to live with and apologised to his victim.
Judge David Swinnerton said the girl had been "scared" to disclose the "disgraceful abuse" committed against her.
The judge said Jones now said he recognised the distress he caused and apologised, but in all the courses he had attended due to his earlier sexual offending, he didn't disclose these crimes and when the child did, he initially denied them, "so your remorse doesn't appear to have been very strong at that point".
He said the girl described her distress at remembering the pain of the abuse and added: "I have no doubt that as a memory that will not go away, no matter how well she manages to cope with it."
Judge Swinnerton said one rape was when the girl was "particularly vulnerable" after being ill.
He said: "You acted as a predatory paedophile when the opportunity presented itself to you."
Judge Swinnerton jailed him for 13 and a half years, with an extended five years on licence.
Jones must serve at least nine years behind bars before he can apply for parole and will only be released then if he is no longer considered to be a risk.
He must sign on the Sex Offenders Register and comply with a SHPO for life.
Judge Swinnerton turned to the girl after Jones was sent down and said: "Thank you for your bravery in coming forward and in coming [to court] today."