A 33-year-old man has been jailed for a year and 14 days for sexually assaulting a teenager in Lydney in June 2021 and breaching the terms of a court order.

Alexander Bingham of London Road, Gloucester had pleaded guilty at the city’s Crown Court to the sexual assault of a girl on June 23, 2021. He was later found guilty of breaching an interim sexual harm prevention order.

Virginia Cornwall, the prosecutor at Taunton Crown Court last week, explained that Bingham had been drinking in Bathurst Park.

One of the people he was in the park with was a woman who was friends with a 16-year-old girl who joined the group at around 6.30pm.

The prosecutor explained that this teenager was unknown to Bingham. After about an hour she announced she was going into Lydney town centre to buy food and Bingham said that he would accompany her.

On the way into town, Bingham linked his arm into hers and hugged her. As he did so he put his hand underneath her clothing, trying to touch her breasts as he did so.

However the teenager prevented him and he then stuck his groin into her and tried to kiss her, before she pulled away.

Bingham then asked her if she was scared of him. She said she was and pointed out that she was 16 and alone with him and ran off.

In an impact statement the teenager said that she now feels uncomfortable walking alone.

The court heard that following Bingham’s conviction of the sexual assault, he was made subject to an interim sexual harm prevention order. Three days after that order, which prohibited him from having any conduct with any girl under the age of 21, he had breached it.

At the time of the breach Bingham was lodging in a hotel in Gloucester docks. A 19-year-old woman booked a room in the same hotel, which was said to be ‘highly coincidental’. Bingham was said to have had this woman to stay at the hotel and to bring her 17-year-old friend, who was a vulnerable young girl.

Bingham had also been subjected to an abduction warning notice relating to the same girl. He was seen on the CCTV walking out of the hotel behind the two teenagers, going across the road.

Police observed that in the area of the restaurant he was in the presence of a number of young women. He told officers that he had gone out of the hotel for a smoke.

In mitigation Sarah Jenkins said that the offending occurred shortly after he had been released from prison and he still had a drug addiction.

She added that he is undergoing treatment for his medical issues and pointed out that Bingham has not reoffended since he was arrested for the original offence.

Recorder Millard told Bingham “You have a bad criminal record. These are your first convictions for sexual offences. However you are in court more frequently than I am, with 67 convictions for 199 offences, most of which were connected to your drug misuse and over half of these offences were committed while on bail.

“This demonstrates your attitude towards court orders. I note that in June 2021 and October 2021 you were convicted on multiple breaches of a criminal behaviour order. What this tells me is that you are not very good at obeying court orders.

“You are a man who hangs around young girls under the age of 18. You make friends with them by buying them alcohol. Prior to your driving disqualification you gave them lifts. You were subject to an abduction warning notice at the time.

“The probation service have categorised you as being of serious risk of harm towards girls aged between 14 and 16. I agree with that assessment. Your original sexual harm prevention order was imposed because you sexually assaulted a 16-year-old girl who you had recently met.

“I note this offence is of some age and I also acknowledge that you have a lot of personal issues and that your health is not good and that you are undergoing medical investigations.

“The offences are so serious that only an immediate custodial sentence can be justified as there is no prospect of rehabilitation.”

The judge sentenced Bingham to a prison term of one year and 14 days.

Bingham was also made subject to a sexual harm prevention order prohibiting him associating with girls under the age of 21 for seven years and sex offenders’ registration for the same time period.

The disclosure and barirng service will be notified of Bingham’s conviction which will prevent him from working with children.