A man who sexually abused a young girl over nearly seven years, including rape, has received a 19-and-a-half-year prison sentence.
Robert Jepson, 62, committed these offences between December 2015 and October 2022 in the town of St Ives.
His criminal conduct included multiple sexual offences, in addition to the rape.
The girl confided in someone at school in February 2023 after lessons about consent and appropriate sexual conduct, leading to Jepson’s arrest.
He denied the charges, accusing the girl of initiating the sexual contact, but was arrested immediately following the allegations.
At Cambridge Crown Court on 13 May, Jepson, from Woodford near Kettering, was found guilty by a unanimous jury verdict of rape, engaging in sexual activity with a child under 13, and six counts of assault involving a girl under 13 through touching.
The court mandated that he sign the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely and issued indefinite orders to prevent him from causing sexual harm and to restrain him from contacting the victim.
