Manea pervert photographer Brian Claassen, has been jailed for sexually assaulting a four year old girl and having indecent images of children on his computer in his studio in Swindon.

Claassen 40, of Valentine Close, Manea, was sentenced to three years and four months behind bars after pleading guilty to the offences.

They took place at his photography studio, Lifestyle Portraits Ltd, based in the Brunel Shopping Centre in Swindon, in June 2016.

He assaulted the young girl and took an indecent photograph of her at his Wiltshire business.

He also pleaded guilty to charges of possessing indecent images of children - 166 in total.

All pleas were made at earlier hearings at Portsmouth Crown Court.

Det Con Mark Harris, from Swindon CID, said: “I am extremely pleased with the sentence handed out today.

“I must thank the family involved. Without the questioning nature of this young girl - who told her mum and dad in the first place - and the help and support her parents have given our investigation team, it’s possible Claassen’s activities could have gone undetected.

“Instead, their vital evidence has led to a guilty plea and sentence.

“This case highlights the dedication Wiltshire Police have to victims of sexual offences.

“The outcome sends a message to anyone who carries out this sort of behaviour.

“We will thoroughly investigate and bring you to justice.”

As well as the custodial sentence, Claassen will be on the Sex Offenders register for 10 years and will be the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order. His electronic equipment will be forfeited.

An NSPCC spokesperson said: “Claasson took advantage of a vulnerable young girl for his own sexual gratification and the impact of his actions on her emotional wellbeing is likely to be severe. We hope she receives appropriate support to recover.

“He also amassed a collection of online videos of child abuse, in which youngsters suffer horrendously for this vile trade in indecent images.

“In order to stem the tide of child abuse images online, the NSPCC is calling for every police force in the UK to have a specialist digital child abuse unit trained to deal with online offences against children and for web providers to do far more to prevent this sickening material from being available on their platforms to abusers like Claasson.”

• Any adult concerned about the welfare of a child or young person can call the NSPCC helpline for free 24/7 on 0808 800 5000. Meanwhile, children can call ChildLine on 0800 1111.

• The NSPCC has a Let’s talk PANTS campaign to help parents teach their children on how to stay safe.

• An NSPCC spokesman said: “Weaving simple conversations about staying safe into the daily routine is a great way to stop it feeling like a lecture. If it feels less weird for your child it will feel much easier for you.”• Follow this link.

•