A MAN who pursued and exposed himself to children as young as eight in a Warrington park has been jailed.

Christian Taylor, 41, originally from Macclesfield, appeared via video link from HMP Altcourse in Liverpool Crown Court today, Friday in a case which Judge Brian Cummings deemed ‘alarming’.

Simon Duncan, prosecuting, said on November 18, at about 1.35pm, a group of five children were playing in a wooded area of Peel Hall Park in Houghton Green.

They kept seeing a man behind the bushes with his trousers down but thought he was going to the toilet.

One child reported seeing the man’s hand moving up and down on his penis multiple occasions.

Another child walked near to Taylor. He made lewd comments to them, while another reported Taylor whispering to him 'Please lie'.

One of the children’s dads received a call at 2.10pm and the child told him that someone was following him with his penis out.

The court heard the dad rushed to the children where Taylor said he was just having a wee.

In response, the dad said he was calling the police and when Taylor tried to get away, he detained him until police arrived.

Taylor admitted he was on the sex offenders' register but said he got caught short and needed a wee but saw the children and stopped.

Warrington Guardian:

Peel Hall Park

The mum of two of the victims reported that they have not played outside since the incident.

She said: “I feel like the man has taken their childhood.”

Taylor was previously sentenced to 15 months, suspended for two years, in Chester Crown Court in August 2017 for two counts of engaging with sexual activity in front of a child in public toilets.

Jeremy Rawson, defending, said Taylor did not enter a guilty plea at magistrates’ court and stressed that if he had, he would not have been entitled to free representation in crown court.

He said he was currently working as a mentor in the prison and has limited contact with his family.

Taylor complied on the community aspect of his previous suspended sentence before he breached it.

Warrington Guardian: The two men were sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court on Monday

Liverpool Crown Court

Judge Brian Cummings, sentencing, described the circumstances of Taylor’s case as alarming.

He said: “You committed four offences involving masturbating in front of young boys in a park.

“There are serious aggravating factors – your previous convictions, there are multiple victims and the location and timing in a very public place.

“I am quite satisfied that there is a significant factor of risk from you to members of the public, especially young boys.

“The fact that you have committed the present offences so soon seems to me that you have a very powerful urge to offend.”

Taylor was sentenced to eight years in prison for four counts of engaging with sexual activity in front of a child and 12 months, to serve concurrently, for one count of breaching a sexual harm prevention order.