A FORMER Army sergeant and charity worker has been jailed for seven years after being found guilty of sexually abusing two young girls.

Brian Tokarski was previously found guilty of five offences of indecent assault and two of indecency with a child in Padiham and Clayton-le-Moors.

At Preston Crown Court yesterday he also admitted two offences of indecent assault against a child in 1985, while he was working his way up to the rank of staff sergeant in the Royal Engineers.

In both cases Tokarski, 55, who worked as a CCTV operator at Accrington Police Station until last year, told the girls to keep it a secret so that they would not get into trouble.

He also asked both girls whether they were enjoying themselves as he indecently assaulted them.

Judge Robert Brown told Tokarski said: "I have considered the young age of both victims, the medical problems and regular counselling needed by the first victim and the ordeal of the second victim, who had to go through a trial with the accusation she had made everything up."

Mr Brown sentenced Tokarski to four years in relation to the most recent offences and three years for those committed in the 1980s.

He was also banned him from any unsupervised contact with anyone under the age of 18 and from working with children, as well as putting him on the Sex Offenders Register.

Tokarski, who had a successful career in the Army, was born in Scotland in 1915 to a Polish farmer and Scottish labourer.

He left school at the age of 15 and gained an apprenticeship at the age of 17, before joining the Army.

He completed 23 years in the Royal Engineers, working his way up to staff sergeant before being discharged with good conduct and long service medals and a character described as "exemplary."

It was during this time that he committed the first two offences of indecent assault.

When he left the Army, he became a transport manager and then went on to be a driver for the former Across Trust charity, which provided pilgrimages and holidays for sick and terminally ill children.

Due to back, shoulder and neck problems, he stopped working as a professional driver and during the next few years worked as security officer at various organisations including Manchester Royal Infirmary and Asda.

In the summer of 2003 he was employed as a CCTV operator for Hyndburn Council based at Accrington Police Station, where he worked until the more recent allegations were brought against him.

He has remained in custody, in a segregation wing, since February this year and became an educational mentor knwon as a "listener" for other inmates.

The court was told both his family and partner Pat, who is a nurse, had stood by him throughout the court case.