A PENSIONER is starting a 16-year prison sentence for a series of historic sexual assaults.

Alan Graham, 75, received the long sentence after finally admitting two charges of rape, only changing his pleas to ‘guilty’ on the day of his scheduled trial for the offences at Durham Crown Court last month.

Graham previously admitted a total of 15 other charges for offences of indecent assault, gross indecency with a child and inducing the child to engage in sexual activity.

Graham, of Bullion Lane, Chester-le-Street, who has remained in custody since making his initial admissions, at the court in March, was warned by Judge Christopher Prince to expect a lengthy sentence when he finally pleaded guilty to the two charges of rape on the day the trial was to have begun, on Monday, September 10.

Following preparation of background reports on him by the Probation Service, Graham was brought back before Judge Prince at the court for sentence.

The judge, having read those background reports, told Graham: “You have shown no remorse, to this day.”

The judge said the fact that Graham waited until the day the trial was to have started to change his plea aggravated the case, and reduced what credit he would gain for admitting the offences.

Jailing him, Judge Prince also imposed a sexual offences prevention order on Graham, “until further notice”.

It prevents him, on his release, from having unsupervised contact with anyone under the age of 16 without the permission of the child’s parent or guardian.

Graham must also sign the Sex Offenders’ Register for the rest of his life, to give notification of where he is living in future.