Child abuser had 'devastating impact' on girl

John Briggs had denied wrongdoing but was found guilty by jurors

A child molester who groped and abused a girl has been jailed for four years.

John Briggs, 60 and from Houghton-le-Spring, near Sunderland, had a "devastating impact" on his young victim, Newcastle Crown Court heard.

The girl said the abuse had led to her self-harming and being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), adding she could never get back the time he had taken from her.

Briggs had denied all wrongdoing but was found guilty of eight counts of sexual assault of a child under the age of 13.

'Egregious actions'

In a statement read to the court, the victim said she had been "scared" by the abuse and it "changed" her.

She said she now found it impossible to trust men or be alone with them for fear of what they would to do her.

"I can never get the time back he has taken away from me," the girl said.

Judge Julie Scott said Briggs, a former cabinetmaker and machine technician, had had a "devastating impact" on his young victim and his actions had been "egregious".

"She will have to live with what you did to her for the rest of her life," the judge told Briggs, adding "no sentence of any length could change that for her".

Briggs was also made subject of a sexual harm prevention order and must sign the sex offender register for life.