A PAEDOPHILE who raped two young girls in the 1980s has been jailed for 24 years.

Paul Cole, now 70, raped the first victim between 1981 and 1984 with the help of a man named Derek Flintham, who died last year before he could be charged and brought to justice. 

Cole was between 25 and 28 years old at the time of his attacks on the first victim.

She was groomed and sexually abused by Flintham, previously of St Dunstans Road, Hounslow. That led to him taking the victim to Mortimer Common in his car where Cole also raped her.

She was later raped by Cole at a house, she was taken there by Flintham.

Cole raped the second victim years later in Basinstoke in 1988 after he became acquainted with her.

The two girls were not known to each other.

At Winchester Crown Court on October 10, Cole, of Great Yarmouth, was convicted by a jury of nine of the 11 charges he was accused of. 

He was found guilty of indecently assaulting the second victim in 1987 and between 1988 and 1990.

On Monday, December 18, Cole appeared at the same court to be sentenced. 

The abuse took place in London, Reading and Basingstoke in the 1980s.

The court was told that the second victim had approached the Met Police in 2003 to report the rapes. However, police didn’t pursue the case because of a lack of evidence despite interviewing Cole in January 2004.

Police could charge him only after the first victim approached police in relation to rapes by Flintham.

Despite him strenuously denying any knowledge of his first victim, she was able to correctly identify his place of work which the prosecution used to disprove Cole’s defence.

Another key piece of evidence was the diary of Cole’s second victim, in which an entry dated in June 1988 detailed how Cole lured the victim into his home in Basingstoke before indecently assaulting her.

A statement from the first victim, read by prosecutor Ellie Fargin, shared how the rapes have impacted her life. The second victim then gave her witness statement over a video call. 

Defending, Nick Lobbenberg KC said 'mitigation was limited'.

He continued: “First and foremost his age. He is 70 years of age. He has the usual problems of a man of his age. There is going to be an obvious consequence of the sentence passed.

“Since his offences, there has been no other sexual offending. These are crimes committed in his youth, plainly under a very wicked man.”

Sentencing, Judge Richard Parkes KC said these were the most appalling sexual abuses to two young girls.

He said: “The court heard how your deplorable behaviour has effectively ruined their lives. That I think is no exaggeration. It’s serious, the effect of sexual abuse that adult sexual predators have on children.”

Cole won’t be released on licence until completing 16 years in prison. He will be subject to a sex offender's notification requirement for life.

He also has a restraining order preventing him from contacting the victims.

The judge also ordered an indefinite sexual harm prevention order against Cole.

Following the sentencing, Louise Holmes, of the CPS Wessex Complex Casework Unit, said: “Paul Cole fooled members of the community into believing he was an honest, hardworking family man. In reality, he was a cruel rapist who preyed on children for his own selfish sexual gratification.

“Both victims were unknown to each other and bravely came forward separately years after suffering at Cole’s hands.

“Their evidence of how Cole abused them was similar and piecing that evidence together was crucial for our prosecution team, who carefully unravelled Cole’s guilt to the jury.

“Our message to victims of historic sex abuse is clear – it is never too late to achieve justice.”