A CHILD abuser who had to move away from his home town while on bail struck again when he groped a teenager.

Scott Kitching had been accused of sexually assaulting three young girls by pulling down their trousers or leggings, and indecently touching a young woman on six or seven occasions .

Teesside Crown Court heard that the older victim warned him to stop, but when he continued she punched the 21-year-old in the face.

Kitching, of Skelton Street, Hartlepool, was bailed to an address in West Yorkshire, but within a day had gone on to commit six further sexual assaults.

He was tried and convicted by magistrates, then was due to stand trial at Teesside Crown Court when he pleaded guilty to two sexual assaults and three charges of sexually assaulting a child under 13.

Erimnaz Mushtaq, mitigating, told Judge Simon Bourne-Arton, QC, that Kitching has a low IQ with a degree of learning difficulties, which could in part explain his behaviour.

The judge told Kitching that he had "a pretty limited appreciation" of what he had done, and said he was concerned because of the number of victims involved, his persistence and his attitude to offending.

He added: "It is urged on your behalf that those difficulties and your failure to appreciate that what you had done would be best dealt with you attending courses pursuant to a community order.

"The problem I have, which is clearly illustrated in the pre-sentence report, is that notwithstanding your problems you have expressed a singular lack of appreciation of that you have done, and you continue, to some extent, to blame your victims."

"You are minimising, at every turn, your offending and your interest in young girls and your sexual interest generally."

Kitching was jailed for 16 months, ordered to sign on the sex offenders' register for ten years, and given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order banning him from having unsupervised contact with girls under 16.