December 2017 The face of a Kent paedophile who subjected a seven-year-old girl to months of sexual abuse This is the face of a depraved sex-offender who subjected a seven-year-old girl to six months of sexual abuse in West Sussex Benjamin Tomsett, previously of Poplar Way in Midhurst, was sentenced at Portsmouth Crown Court after being found guilty of a number of sex offences against children. Tomsett, who began his sickening crimes while living in Cherry Orchard, Hadlow, moved to Midhurst in February this year where the assaults continued. Following his arrest he returned to Kent and lived in Boxley Road in Maidstone. The shop manager was eventually found guilty of four counts of sexual assaults against the girl who was known to him. He also pleaded guilty to the further charge of possessing 243 indecent images of unidentified young girls. He will be a registered sex offender for life and was also given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) to last until further court order, severely restricting his access to computers and children. Det Cons Amanda Zinyama of the West Sussex Safeguarding Investigations Unit said: “For six months this little girl had been subjected to systematic assaults by Tomsett, who had the confidence of her family and used that as cover to commit the offences against her in her own home, sometimes even when family members were present. “Finally the girl summoned up the courage to tell her family. As soon as we were told, enquiries were made and Tomsett was swiftly arrested. “When he was arrested his mobile phone was seized and the indecent images of children were found. None were of his victim or of any other identifiable children. “He admitted to downloading and viewing the images when he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol but he denied the sexual assaults up to and throughout the trial. “His victim therefore had to have her fully detailed and video-recorded evidence played in court and was cross-examined as part of his defence.”