Sex offender who assaulted jogger jailed

A convicted paedophile who sexually assaulted a young woman as she ran past him has been jailed for two-and-a-half years.

Charles Wood "lurked" by a footbridge in the North Yorkshire village of Kildwick before attacking his victim and performing a sex act on himself, York Crown Court was told.

Wood, 43, from nearby Keighley, was previously jailed in 2004 for the attempted rape of a child.

Judge Simon Hickey told Wood, who appeared in court via videolink from prison, he posed a "significant risk to lone females".

The court was told the victim had been out running at around 07:40 BST on 9 April when she was groped by Wood as she ran past him.

As she stopped and turned around he exposed himself to her, before retreating to some bushes.

Another woman passing by found the victim in tears a short time later and called the police to report the incident, the court heard.

Police initially arrested another man for the offence, before an officer later recognised Wood from mobile phone footage the two women managed to record of him from a distance.

He was then arrested and later pleaded guilty to sexual assault and indecent exposure.

A victim impact statement read to the court told how the woman continued to be "haunted" by nightmares about the attack months later.

She said: "I'm constantly on edge around unknown men. The thought of going back to the area remains completely unimaginable.

"The thought of women of all ages walking in this area fills me with physical sickness, knowing the dangers we face because of this man."

The court was told that Wood had faced an "extended" period on licence after being released from prison for the attempted rape of a child, for which he was sentenced 20 years ago.

However, his licence conditions had expired by the time of the sexual assault this year.

He also had previous convictions for indecent exposure, dating from 2002, and stalking, from 2018.

Judge Hickey said there had been "significant planning" behind the attack, as Wood had deliberately driven from Keighley to the village that morning.

He told him: "You were deliberately there in an isolated area, in the sense there were very few people around at that time.

"You were there in that quiet location to seek out a vulnerable female, who was on her own and didn't expect such an assault.

"The victim says quite rightly that she should, as anybody should, be able to go out for a run early in the morning and not be molested in this way."

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