GARY PAINTIN FROM HAMPSHIRE SENTENCED FOR SEX OFFENCES INVOLVING A MINOR

Following a police investigation in Hampshire, Gary Paintin was tracked via number plate recognition and arrested. He denied engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child. Paintin claimed he was simply holding a bird that had escaped into his car after he had to brake hard on the motorway, but he was unable to sustain this story before the jury.

The jury took just 26 minutes to convict him after hearing about his previous convictions, including one in 2008 for following a school bus while performing a sex act in his car, and another in 2011 for offering a 16-year-old girl a ten-pound note in exchange for a lewd act.

On Wednesday, Judge Roger Hetherington sentenced Paintin to two and a half years in prison, stating, 'This isn’t just exhibitionism; it’s more like an assault in a way.' He added, 'It was quite a disgraceful thing to have done.'

Jurors learned that Paintin goes by eight aliases and has accumulated 47 convictions for 29 different offences. During the trial, a young boy bravely testified, rejecting Paintin’s claim that he was holding a bird, noting that he knew what a bird looked like.

In police footage, the victim, who has experienced nightmares since the incident, described how Paintin wiggled himself to the side before attempting to repeat his actions when the boy was looking. The boy told police he had told his mother: 'That man who just left is a bad man because he showed me (himself).' He also demonstrated a waving gesture resembling Justin from the TV show Mr Tumble, before Paintin committed his offence.

The boy’s mother expressed her pride for her son’s bravery in court and said, 'I’m immensely proud of him. I feel angry that he had to go through this and that a guilty plea wasn't made.' His father added, ‘Abuse is endemic, and children need emotional support. They need a system that believes and listens to them. We are grateful this case has been addressed.' Both parents praised Detective Constable Mark Reynolds for his investigation and encouraged other victims of child abuse to come forward.

Prosecutor Martyn Booth described Paintin as having a 'troubling and concerning attraction towards children.' He told the court before the trial began that, 'The crown’s case is that he was exposing himself and playing with himself.' The defense argued that Paintin was holding a bird that had escaped into his car, which the young boy had seen.

Sam Barker, defending, asked the judge to postpone sentencing to allow Paintin to care for his collection of 200 birds, suggesting he might sell or free them to prevent suffering. The judge granted bail temporarily to let Paintin address his birds, setting a deadline of 2 pm for sentencing. Paintin briefly fled court with his keys but returned in time to be sentenced.

Paintin is required to register as a sex offender for ten years and is subject to a sexual harm prevention order that bans him from being in contact with children.