A FORMER special police constable who made sickening videos of himself raping and indecently assaulting girls has been jailed for ten years.

Student teacher Dominic Patrick McCallan, 28, gained the trust of parents by teaching their children judo, Newcastle Crown Court was told.

Police say they fear many more girls may have fallen victim without realising they had become his prey. At last Friday's hearing, Judge David Hodson took the unusual step of allowing a video made by McCallan, of Medomsley, Consett, to be shown.

Court staff, barristers and journalists sat in stunned silence as the crimes were shown, while McCallan hung his head and cried.

The video showed several indecent assaults and a rape on three girls aged about ten during a bogus first aid test. One of the girls filmed being abused while she slept, did not know of the crime to this day, the court was told.

Prosecutor Beatrice Bolton said the attacks took place between 1995 and 1999. She told the court that McCallan was a special constable with the Durham Constabulary for six years until 1997.

He then started an education degree at Sunderland University with a view to becoming a primary school teacher specialising in IT.

When police raided McCallan's home, they found 8,000 indecent pictures in his computer taken from 209 pornographic internet websites. During a six month investigation police interviewed more than 200 children.

At a previous hearing, McCallan pleaded guilty to one charge of rape, four charges of indecent assault, three of taking indecent photographs, and six of possessing indecent pictures of children.

Sentencing him to 15 years - ten years in custody with a five-year supervision order on his release - the judge said: "I do not think it is an exaggeration to say this is one of the most disturbing cases I have come across in all my years on the bench.

"By deceit and deception you engineered a situation whereby young girls and their parents were tricked into believing you were a responsible person who could give judo instruction to their children."

He ordered that McCallan should be placed on the sex offenders' register indefinitely.