A SEX abuser was jailed yesterday after his victim reported him to the police, nine years after the offences were committed.

A 19-year-old girl who was haunted by the memory finally told her boyfriend about Alan Charman, said Paul Cleasby, prosecuting.

She agreed to go to the police and Charman, 49, admitted indecently assaulting her in Loftus, East Cleveland, over 18 months.

Teesside Crown Court heard that Charman had not seen her for seven years, said Dan Edwards, defending.

Mr Edwards said that Charman would benefit from a sex offenders' course run by the Probation Service, but the judge said that the offences demanded an immediate custodial sentence.

Charman, of Oak Road, Whitby, North Yorkshire, was jailed for 12 months after he pleaded guilty to two charges of indecent assault. He was also ordered to register as a sex offender for ten years.

Judge Leslie Spittle told him: "One can see from reading her statement how this matter has dwelt on her mind over the years, and she was unable to come to terms with it.

"My public duty demands and the offences demand an immediate custodial sentence."