A 55-year-old man has been handed a 19-year jail sentence after a string of sex offences against a child.

Timothy Neale, of Montgomery Avenue in Lowestoft, was sentenced at Norwich Crown Court on Tuesday.

He was first sentenced to 19 years in prison for two counts of rape.

He was also then sentenced to 12 years for a further three counts of rape.

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Neale was also handed a further sentence of 12 months and nine months for two counts of causing a child to watch a sexual act.

The 55-year-old was handed 30 months in jail for one count of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child.

He was finally given a three year for one count of sexual assault of a child.

All the sentences will run concurrently, meaning he will serve a total of 19 years.

The sentences follow a two-week trial in late April where he pleaded not guilty to all of the offences after his initial charges in May 2020.

After the sentencing, Det Con Williams, of the Internet Child Abuse Investigations Team, said: “This was a highly traumatic and distressing experience for the victim and I commend them for the strength shown throughout.

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"It has been a long journey to reach this stage for the victim and their family to endure.

“They have also shown incredible bravery in terms of reporting it to police and also providing evidence during the investigation, court hearings and trial which again shows their courage in securing this conviction.

“This case demonstrates we are committed to pursuing perpetrators of non-recent incidents and supporting victims.

"We urge victims of any serious violent or sexual offence to come forward to the police, seek support from the agencies available and we remain committed to supporting all victims who report sexual offences.”