A Fishwick man has been jailed for sexual offences against children.
Sabbir Patel, 59, was arrested after being seen with a 14-year-old girl and another child in Ribbleton Park last year.
A concerned member of the public contacted police and Patel was arrested for breaching a child abduction warning he had been given in April last year.
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While Patel, of Ripon Terrace, Fishwick, was in prison awaiting a court date his victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, wrote a letter detailing the sexual offences committed against her.
This included an incident in Moor Park where he incited the child to engage in sexual activity and another occasion he had woken her up and attempted to engage her in sexual activity.
Preston Police say on multiple occasions he said he loved the teenage girl and described her as having a ‘sexy body’.
The girl suffered multiple sexual offences over a period of 12 months at the hands of Patel.
He pleaded guilty at Preston Crown Court earlier this year to six sexual assaults and engaging in sexual activity with a child.
He has been jailed for six years and given a indefinite sexual harm prevention order and must sign the sex offenders register for life.
In an impact statement to the court, the victim’s mum wrote: “My daughter’s confidence has depleted massively. This has caused her to struggle keeping and forming relationships with friends and with family. My daughter struggles to trust people and she puts barriers up when she is around her family and friends.
“My daughter does not like any physical touch, she will push away when myself or her family come near her. I feel this is a result of the abuse she suffered from Patel.”
DC Ella Burrow, of the Preston child exploitation team, said: “Patel is a dangerous individual with a sordid sexual interest in female children.
“His offending has had a significant and ongoing impact on his victim, as demonstrated in the victim impact statement from written by her mum. I would like to praise the victim for the bravery in firstly putting down in writing what Patel had done to her, and then supporting the judicial process.
“I wound encourage anyone reading this who finds themselves or suspects someone else to be in a similar situation to contact the police. We will listen to you, and we will do everything in our power to put the abuser before the courts.”
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