A PAEDOPHILE described as vile and devious was starting a 20-year prison sentence on Wednesday night for a series of attacks on two girls decades ago.

Police and victims of Arthur Bierton welcomed his conviction and sentence - which is likely to see the 72-year-old pervert die behind bars.

Bierton, from Thirsk, North Yorkshire, was yesterday convicted of abusing the youngsters within months of being freed from jail for child rape.

He told a jury at Teesside Crown Court that his previous convictions - in 1975 and 1979 - were based on false allegations he was persuaded to admit.

His ludicrous claims were dismissed by the jury of seven women and five men, and he was convicted of all 14 charges he faced after two days of deliberations.

Last night, one of his victims revealed how the convicted paedophile has ruined her life, and told The Northern Echo: "He's vile and hope he rots."

After the case ended, Sergeant Andy Palmer of North Yorkshire Police, said: “The verdict shows Arthur Bierton for what he is and always has been – a vile paedophile who has absolutely no remorse for his victims.

“His conviction proves that there is no hiding place for people like him. We take reports of non-recent sexual assault extremely seriously and will do everything in our power to bring offenders to justice, no matter how many decades have lapsed.

“However, this outcome would not have been possible without the enormous bravery of his victims, who have been supported through the process by sexual abuse charity IDAS and specially-trained police officers.

“It’s difficult to imagine having to live with the harrowing impact of Bierton’s offending for such a long time. But to make matters worse, Bierton’s cowardly denial means they’ve had to relive this during a criminal trial.

“Their courage and co-operation have ensured that a man with a horrific history of sexual offending will now spend a very long time in prison, where he belongs.”

During his evidence, Bierton, of Stockton Road, Thirsk, was described by prosecutor Paul Newcombe as "a devious and cunning paedophile" who was deluded.