POLICE today spoke of their relief at catching a sex pest who went from flashing schoolgirls to indecent assault.

Jason James Firth, 26, exposed himself to teenage girls on separate occasions last summer in Darwen.

And by September he had pinned a woman up against a wall while exposing himself. She managed to struggle free and give a description to police which an officer recognised.

Firth, of Richmond Terrace, Darwen, is awaiting sentence from Preston Crown Court after pleading guilty to one charge of indecent assault and five others of gross indecency.

Detective Constable Scott Waddington said it was not possible to say if Firth would have committed a more serious sexual assault if he had remained at large.

But he added that it was clear Firth was potentially dangerous and had to be stopped.

Mr Waddington, of Darwen CID, added: "From our point of view, we are glad we have got hold of someone who has not done it as a one-off but as a regular thing.

"He went from gross indecency to indecent assault and we are hoping he will get a decent sentence."

Firth, who has learning difficulties and a mental age significantly lower than his 26 years, exposed himself to the 15-year-old girls in Darwen.

In one of the incidents, two girls walking down Union Street saw Firth near some trees while exposing himself. And in September, another girl was walking along an alley near Bridge Street when Firth jumped out, exposed himself and chased after her. She evaded his clutches and fled to a nearby friend's house.

In the same month, Firth approached a woman walking home from a nightclub and jumped out in front of her just yards from her home. He pushed her against a wall while exposing himself but she managed to fight him off and get inside her house.

Police did not initially link Firth to three of the sexual assaults in May but checked the incidents with other unsolved offences and made the connections.

Firth appeared at Preston Crown Court yesterday to see his case adjourned for psychiatric reports until Friday, March 5.

The judge, Justice Mackay, said he could not prejudge the report but warned Firth, who has a previous conviction for a sex-related crime, to expect a custodial sentence.