SENTENCES given to men found guilty of child sex offences have been slammed by the father of one of the victims.
Blackburn men Ian Hindle, 32, of Church Walk and Andrew Wells, 49, of Infirmary Street, were jailed for a total of five years and three months for sexual activity with 14-year-old girls.
But the father of one the girls said he was ‘disgusted’ with the result, as the three-year sentence given to Hindle and a two-year and three-month sentence given to Wells mean the pair could both be free within 18 months.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, contacted the Lancashire Telegraph to tell of his horror at seeing abusive pictures of his daughter, taken by Wells when the youngster was drunk.
He said: “I can’t understand how people who do these things to young childen can get off so lightly, I was expecting something more like six years.
“Where children are concerned, we just don’t protect them enough.
"Sentences like these aren’t enough to stop this sort of thing from happening again.
“What they have done to my daughter is completely disgusting, and while it can’t be made right, I expected justice.
“She is only just recovering from what happened to her and wants to put it behind her.
“But I am really worried."
Preston Crown Court heard Wells and Hindle had invited two girls to Wells’ Infirmary Street flat, where they had plied the pair with alcohol.
While drinking at the flat, one of the girls became ill, and went to the toilet - but was followed in by Wells who exposed himself to her.
A relationship between Hindle and another of the girls came to light after she was abused and photographed while drunk by Wells.
The pair were also disqualified from working with children and banned from unsupervised contact with children under 16 in addition to their custodial sentences.
Ealier this week it was revealed that Hindle and Wells had been thrown out of the British National Party when the offences came to light.
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