Burnley man sentenced to over 15 years for sexually assaulting young girl
Victim's family shares impact of abuse as offender receives jail term
A 35-year-old man from Burnley has been sentenced to 15 years and six months in prison for sexually assaulting a young girl.
Ian Wagstaff committed the offences when the girl was aged 10, which came to light after she made comments at school that prompted staff to contact Lancashire Police.
Wagstaff was subsequently arrested and stood trial in December last year.
He was found guilty by a jury at Burnley Crown Court of assaulting a girl under 13 by penetration and two offences of assaulting a girl under 13 by touching.
Appearing for sentencing on 27th February, Wagstaff, who has no fixed address, received an extended one-year licence period in addition to his prison term.
He has also been issued a 25-year restraining order.
The young girl shared in her Victim Personal Statement: "Don't be afraid to tell someone even though it may be hard."
Her mother described the profound impact of the abuse on her daughter: “My daughter has really struggled, with her emotions, with her mental health, and her relationships with others has suffered. It was very difficult for her talking to police about what had happened. Saying out loud about what had happened was a difficult thing to do.”
Her mum continued: “I think this is something she will always be scared of. What happened to her will affect her all her life and she will always live with the pain of what this man did to her.”
Det Con Cathryn Whitworth emphasized the seriousness of the offence, stating: “Wagstaff’s offending against a young girl was disgusting and the lengthy prison sentence he now has to serve shows the seriousness of what he did.”
She added, “Lancashire Police take all complaints of sexual offences extremely seriously and we will thoroughly investigate them to bring offenders to justice.”