A MAN with a self-confessed sexual preoccupation with children was jailed for two years after committing a sex act on himself in public.

Gary Smith was seen acting suspiciously outside a village pub near Stanley, County Durham, as up to a dozen children, aged between five and ten, played nearby, at about 7pm on March 16.

Durham Crown Court heard on Tuesday that his actions came to the attention of a witness in the pub, who alerted the licensee, before going outside to speak to the children.

Martin Towers, prosecuting, said they told him, “the man was staring” at them, and asked him to tell him to stop.

The pub customer challenged ‘Gary’, as he knew him, who claimed to be smoking.

It was brought to police attention and, following his arrest, Smith’s home was searched the following day.

Mr Towers said three dvds, recovered from a living room coffee table, were found to contain moving footage featuring children as young as eight involved in sexual activity with adults.

When questioned about the incident outside the pub, Smith claimed he was “scratching a rash”.

He claimed to have bought the dvds 20 years ago and admitted being sexually attracted to pre-pubescent children.

Mr Towers said Smith has only one conviction, dating from 2001, for making sexually-explicit nuisance phone calls to a care home nurse.

Relating to the latest incident, the 56-year-old, of Sidney Close, Stanley, admitted engaging in sexual activity in the presence of children aged under 13 and three counts of possessing indecent images of children.

Judge Christopher Prince noted that the defendant told the author of a pre-sentence psychiatric report that he had a lifetime sexual attraction to children.

Susan Hirst, for Smith, told the court that despite his self-confessed lifelong “proclivities”, he had shown self-control in not pursuing them in public until his mid-50s.

She said the children may not have even realised what he was doing with his hands in his trousers, as they spoke only of “the man” staring at them.

Miss Hirst added that Smith responded well to a sex offender treatment programme after the 2001 offence and hoped to receive similar assistance now to ensure no repeat of his behaviour.

Jailing him, however, Judge Prince said Smith should also be subject to notification as a sex offender for ten years.

A sexual harm prevention order, to restrict Smith’s activities on his release from prison, is to be confirmed at a hearing next month.