February 2014 Guilt-ridden pensioner who abused schoolgirls 30 years ago handed himself in following Jimmy Savile scandal A pervert pensioner has been jailed for a string of historic child sex crimes after being inspired to hand himself into cops – by the warped crimes of JIMMY SAVILE. Peter Owen admitted the 30-years of offences against schoolgirls after he was overcome by guilt after listening to the harrowing accounts given by the victims of the dead DJ. A court heard the two indecent assaults would never have come to light if the 67-year-old had not handed himself into police. Owen pleaded guilty to both the attacks at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court on Tuesday and was caged for three-and-a-half years. Judge Paul Glenn told him: “I am satisfied that you are remorseful for what you did. “You displayed that with your cooperation with the authorities. “When you committed the first offence, the victim was young but so were you. “In isolation that wouldn’t lead to custody but with the other offence you were an adult and that was premeditated. “The offences spanned over a period of time targeting young vulnerable victims. “I have already mentioned your guilty pleas but the other strong mitigation is that you brought this to the attention of the police. “Without this, it is unlikely these allegations would have surfaced.” Catherine O’Reilly, defending, told the court Owen was “distraught” when he found out his victims had to give a statement to police after his revelation. She said: “Owen pleaded guilty but if it wasn’t for the remorse he felt, these crimes would have never come to light. “The Jimmy Savile case had prompted him to confess to the police on numerous occasions. “The victims, to some degree, managed to get over those crimes and put them behind them and in some cases it was an unhappy moment when they were reminded of these crimes when Owen contacted the police. “He is distraught by the crimes. “One of the moments he was at his lowest was when he found out the victims had been interviewed and had to give a statement. “In his mind, telling the police would have put a final say to the matter and he would pay for the crimes. “He hadn’t thought about them going through the events again. “His guilt has affected his everyday actions and he called the police to confess to the crimes. “The matters are from some age and it is a unique case. “Owen is now a man of 67 years of age and any custodial sentence is difficult but he is prepared for that.” Former BBC presenter Savile is believed to have abused hundreds of victims at the height of his fame. Allegations he had sexually abused children surfaced a year after the Top Of The Pops and Jim’ll Fix It star died in October 2011 aged 84. The revelations prompted hundreds of victims to come forward, including those who said they were attacked at a number of institutions. Inquiries into Savile’s alleged abuse of patients at NHS hospitals had originally focused on Broadmoor and Stoke Mandeville and Leeds General Infirmary, with a further 10 trusts added in January.