A SENIOR Durham City councillor has been jailed for two years after being convicted of a string of sex attacks on young girls.

Teesside Crown Court heard how Coun Leslie Sheppard lured teenage girls into his gold Porsche car and drove them to remote spots where he indecently assaulted them.

Sheppard, 71, was a member of the authority's influential policy and community services scrutiny panels. The two-year sentence automatically disqualifies him from serving on the council. He was also ordered to be placed on the sex offenders' register for ten years.

The former Labour councillor, who represented Coxhoe ward, was convicted last month of ten counts of indecent assault involving three separate girls after a four-day trial.

He angered fellow councillors by continuing to attend meetings while awaiting sentence, despite public calls by the ruling Liberal Democrat group to resign from the authority.

Under local government rules, a councillor is automatically disqualified only when he is sentenced to at least three months' imprisonment, even if sentence is suspended.

The court heard that Sheppard, of The Grove, Coxhoe, had lured one girl, then aged 13, into a car with a promise of a driving lesson, but had indecently assaulted her. Another, also aged 13, punched him in the face when he pulled the car into a layby and attempted to assault her.

A third girl told the court he had driven her to a disused factory on a Sunday afternoon where an assault took place. The youngest of the victims was aged nine at the time. The assaults, some of which date back to 1963, came to light when one of the victims wrote to Sheppard's third wife, Olga, in 1998.

Prosecutor Robin Turton said that Sheppard told police: "I love women, but you do things which you regret."

Jamie Hill, defending, said that Sheppard still maintained his innocence and his family was standing by him.

On Tuesday, Judge Michael Cartlidge told Sheppard: "I acknowledge this is a tragedy for all involved.

"You have a high standing in the community but there is a dark side which convicted you of abusing three young girls."

Durham City Council leader Fraser Reynolds said after the case: "Coun Sheppard will be automatically disqualified as a member of the council because he has received a custodial sentence.

"There will have to be a by-election for the Coxhoe ward and details will be provided in due course."