A PARANOID schizophrenic who carried out a series of letter bomb attacks across the region was yesterday ordered to be detained indefinitely at a mental hospital.

Glynn Harding was branded "pure evil" by a judge for waging the three-month campaign of terror against people and firms he believed had links with animal cruelty.

Harding, 27, sent home-made explosive devices to farmers and other firms with connections to the animal industry, including a pet store and a cancer research charity shop which sold fur coats.

The bombs injured three people, including an estate agent's secretary who was blinded in her left eye and a six-year-old girl, who was left scarred for life.

Passing sentence at Chester Crown Court, Judge Elgan Edwards said Harding would have been jailed for life had it not been for his mental condition.

"For a three month period at the turn of last year, you conducted a dreadful campaign sending nail bombs through the post, putting people at risk and causing, in the case of one lady, the most dreadful injury, blinding her in one eye. In my view this was pure evil on your part," he said.

Several of Harding's targets were in the North-East and North Yorkshire, including Ripon sheep farmer John Thackeray who suffered facial injuries when a bomb exploded.

At an earlier hearing, Harding pleaded guilty to three charges of causing injury by explosives and 12 counts of sending an explosive with intent between last December and February this year.

Prosecutor Duncan Bould said Harding's mental health problems got worse after his common law wife suffered a miscarriage and the couple buried the baby in a jam jar in "a secret place".

"He claimed he heard the voice of Jesus, telling him to send 100 packages to ensure the baby went from hell to heaven," said Mr Bould.

Simon Mills, for Harding, said his client offered police his full co-operation and never tried to justify his actions.

North Yorkshire Police deputy chief constable Peter Walker, who led the investigation, said: "We know he was planning more of these potentially lethal attacks and I am pleased that the fine efforts of so many police officers have put an end to this wicked man's reign of terror."