Paul Morgan 54

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A 52-year-old Yeovil man has been jailed for the depraved sexual abuse of a girl which started when she was just 13. Paul Morgan carried out 'an extensive campaign' of grooming and manipulation on the young victim.

He exploited her young age and vulnerable background and threatened to kill himself for sympathy. When suspicions were raised he lied and said she was to blame. He even forced her to apologise.

Morgan admitted abusing the child on multiple occasions.. He had sex with her more than 50 times when she was aged between 13 and 16, Taunton Crown Court heard. The victim said in a statement that her childhood had been destroyed by his deviant and obsessive behaviour.

Morgan has been jailed for seven years. The defendant, of Muchelney Way, pleaded guilty to six offences of sexual activity with a child and one of sexual communication with a child.

Prosecutor Miss Mary McCarthy said Morgan manipulated the child and groomed her so that he could have sex with her on a regular basis. He was 47 when the abuse started.

He began by sending her messages with sexual comments. He 'normalised' his behaviour sending hundreds of messages and progressing to full sexual contact.

"He was the driver of all that happened," said Miss McCarthy. The abuse happened over a period of two and a half years. When sexualised photos of the child were found on his phone he said she was to blame. When the girl told him the abuse had to end he started to scream, cry and threatened to take his own life, said the prosecutor.

The girl tried to get on with her life but revealed the truth in April 2021. The victim, who was in court to see her abuser jailed, says she suffers severe anxiety and flashbacks as a result of the abuse.

"Her teenage years were destroyed," said Miss McCarthy.

Mr Harry Ahuja, defending, said Morgan fully accepts the consequences of his actions and is sorry. His family remain supportive and references 'talk about these offences being wholly out of character'. His elderly father has dementia and he also helps look after his mother and worries he will never see them again.

Mr Ahuja said there was no further evidence of an unhealthy sexual interest in children. "He wants to move on with his life when he gets out of prison," he added.

Judge Paul Cook said: "You groomed her and manipulated her feelings. You drove how matters progressed. There was significant grooming and a significant disparity in age. It was an extensive campaign of sexual abuse over a significant period."

He said Morgan was hard working and had no previous convictions. The defendant was granted a third credit for his guilty pleas reducing the sentence to seven years, some of which he will serve on licence.

He must sign the sex offenders register and was made subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for life.