A 23-year-old who admitted to having sex with a 13-year-old schoolgirl in the back of his car was today warned that he would face jail for the offence.
Mark Cochrane, of Balmer Hill, Gainford, near Darlington, was told by Judge John Walford that he faced a custodial sentence for having sexual intercourse with the girl.
However, a jury at Teesside Crown Court found Cochrane not guilty of two rapes, attempted rape and two indecent assaults on four women, three of them teenagers.
Judge Walford adjourned the hearing for a pre-sentence report. Cochrane was granted bail on the condition that he did not enter Barnard Castle, Gainford or Middleton-in-Teesdale, and that he did not approach any of the prosecution witnesses. Cochrane was also warned that he would be placed on the Sex Offenders' Register.
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