A MAN who repeatedly molested a young girl when he felt unloved in his marital relationship has been jailed for 28 months.

Mehboob Hassan indecently touched the girl on numerous occasions, starting when she was just 11 years old, and also got her to touch him

The 38-year-old, who has children of his own, then continued carrying out the abuse of the youngster for almost two years.

When he was questioned by police he said he was having difficulties in his marriage and felt unloved, asking officers why he was getting all the blame.

A judge at Swindon Crown Court was told that last October the child revealed to her mother that Hassan had been abusing her since August 2012.

After being arrested he initially denied any wrongdoing but eventually admitted the girl was telling the truth.

“He said she reciprocated: it was unfair that he was getting the blame for it,” Tessa Hingston, prosecuting, told an earlier hearing.

“In interview he said he was having difficulties in the relationship with his wife and he felt unloved.”

A victim impact statement from the girl’s family told how she had developed body image issues and didn’t like to see herself in the mirror.

She also now feels dirty all the time and is obsessed with washing her hands, none of which occurred before she revealed the abuse took place.

Hassan, of Trent Road, pleaded guilty to two multi-incident counts of sexual activity with a child.

Rob Ross, defending, said “It would be odd if a child who suffered this sort of abuse did not suffer some adverse effects.”

his client admitted what he had done at an early stage and his risk of re-offending varied according to the different assessment tools used by probation.

He said the first step to tackling any problem is accepting it exists and he said Hassan was prepared to address what he has done.

“Mr Hassan is accepting he did it, he is not very good at explaining why he did it, it may be he was feeling he was lacking loving in his relationship.”

Urging the court to consider a suspended sentence he said it was a terrible case for the girl and her family but also for his client, who is now separated from his family.

“I have spoken, through him, to his mother indicating he has always been a happy go lucky hard working family man,” he said.

“This behaviour he finds hard to comprehend. It is thankful in the scale of sexual offences it is lower down the scale than we often see.

“At no point has there been penetration, at no point has there been violence, forcing of the child to do anything.

“What could be said on his behalf is he didn’t push it any further. Touching, looking at a young girl’s body, touching a young girl’s body.

“You have heard he told he felt unloved in his marital relationship.

"He can’t really understand why he did it. He clearly regrets it”

Sentencing him, Judge Peter Blair QC said: “I have to sentence, as you know, for the two charges which you pleaded guilty to of sexual activity with a child and you were three times her age, a disparity of about 26 years between you.

“This was a regular occurrence which lasted two years and didn’t come to an end through you stopping your behaviour but as a result of her making a complaint in the face of the fact that you had made it clear to her that this was a secret which she was not to tell anybody about, which is something a child has a massive conflict about: it is an adult giving her instructions but on the other hand it is an adult doing something anybody knows he shouldn’t be doing.

“It has had significant effects on her as set out in the witness statement of her mother, it has disrupted her life in a very significant way.

“I have listened very carefully top what Mr Ross has said. His submissions have made a difference to the position which I originally had in mind, but not such a difference to satisfy me that I can do anything but give you a prison sentence today because that is the proper way to punish this behaviour.”

He jailed Hassan for two years and four months and imposed a seven-year sexual harm prevention order restricting his liberty.