A VICTIM who was raped as a child told police they felt so dirty after the attack that they wanted to clean themself with bleach.

Details of depraved acts carried out by David Hughes were revealed as he was given a sentence that means he will almost certainly die in prison.

The 81-year-old, of Greencroft, South Hetton, East Durham, appeared at Durham Crown Court yesterday.

He had previously been found guilty of four counts of rape, three charges of sexual assault on a child and one charge of sexual assault against two victims.

He forced himself on the children and made one of them perform sex acts on him while they watched pornography.

Prosecutor Shaun Dodds read their victim personal statements to the court.

One said: “I was scared when it was happening. He told me no-one would believe me if I told anyone. He made me do pinkie promises.

“He made me feel crazy and he told me nothing had happened and it was all my fault.

“I felt dirty all of the time even when I was clean.

“I often get nightmares and have flashbacks of the trauma I went through.

“I feel what he did took away my childhood.”

Michael Bosomworth, mitigating, asked the judge to take his client’s age into account.

He said: “In light of the jury’s verdict there is little I can say in this case.”

Judge Christopher Prince imposed two prison terms of 12 and 17 years to run consecutively. He will not be eligible for parole until he is 98.