A paedophile from Markyate has been jailed for 26 months after forcing two teenage girls to watch a sexual act.

Adrian Hayward, 48, was serving a community order sentence for possessing indecent images of children when he contacted a 13-year-old girl from Leicester over the internet.

The girl received a notification from someone using the profile ‘Jamie M’. The girl, who was also with a 16-year-old girl, thought it was a school friend and replied ‘Hi’.

Prosecutor Martin Mulgrew told St Albans Crown Court: “The defendant called through and the 13-year-old girl answered. They could see the defendant masturbating. He asked her to reveal her breasts and she ended the call.”

The court heard that the girl blocked Hayward from sending her messages, but he made 10 attempts to contact her. He asked for pictures of her and sent her a photograph of his penis.

The 16-year-old girl told the 13-year-old’s mother what had happened. She contacted the police and Hayward was traced through the IP address he used.

He was arrested and police recovered a Motorola phone which Hayward should have registered with police as part of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order that was made when he appeared in court for possessing the indecent images.

Hayward, of High Street, Markyate, appeared for sentencing on Friday, July 27 having pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to causing a child to watch a sexual act and breaching the Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

He had four previous convictions for exposure, indecent assault and having indecent images, going back to 1991.

Defending, Dawn Pearson said Hayward was a carer for his elderly parents, and was unemployed, single and had heart and kidney problems.

She said: “He is very sorry for his behaviour and is genuinely ashamed and remorseful.”

However Judge Graham Arran said “He has been on a course that has had no effect whatsoever”, and told Hayward: “You undertook the programme, but that has made absolutely no difference.”

Hayward was jailed for 22 months for causing a child to watch a sexual act, with a further four months for breaching his order.