A HORTON man who exposed himself to dog walkers at a popular beauty spot has been given a four month curfew by the courts.

People walking through the picturesque woods on the Dillington House estate near Ilminster were shocked to see Anthony John Wallbridge masturbating in full view of passers-by.

When he was later questioned by police he likened the experience to watching porn and said he did it around the times he did not see his girlfriend.

One day he was spotted by two separate female walkers, exposed and touching himself, and one commented that he did not appear to be startled or surprised when he realised he had been seen.

The following week a woman who had earlier seen the defendant in the woods saw him again with his genitals exposed and rubbing himself vigorously.

Wallbridge, 27, of Channells Lane, pleaded guilty to three counts of intentionally exposing his genitals intending that someone would see them and be caused alarm or distress at Dillington House, Bayhill, in July.

At a previous hearing before Somerset Magistrates prosecutor Lucy Coleman said that all three offences were committed on the same path that ran through part of Dillington House and was used by a number of people including children, dog walkers and cyclists.

On June 30 a woman was walking her dog when her attention was drawn to a man who was walking towards her, but did not have a dog with him, and he walked off and then ran into the woods.

“She then saw him again, side on, and he appeared to be fumbling in his groin area but she continued to walk past and he apologised and walked out of sight,” she said.

“On July 11 another lady was walking her dog at 8.10am in the grounds of the estate and could see Wallbridge standing in a wooded area with his erect penis protruding from his waistband.

“She saw him for a few seconds touching himself and at first thought he was relieving himself but then realised he was not and carried along the path. Wallbridge then approached and said sorry.”

Later the same day another woman was walking her dog when she saw the defendant walking towards her and he said hello before carrying on. On the way home she found him stood in the open, sideways on, and could see him masturbating.

“She felt shocked and disturbed by what she had seen and said that he did not appear startled or surprised so she contacted the police,” said Miss Coleman.

On July 16 a male dog walker saw Wallbridge walking in the area and had a conversation with him as he had known him for 25 years.

He then bumped into the female who had first seen Wallbridge and had a conversation with her about the recent publicity circulated by the police about recent exposures in the area.

When they parted the woman saw Wallbridge again who had exposed himself through the flies of his trousers and was rubbing himself vigorously.

Further discussions with her male friend led to the identification of the defendant and he was arrested.

Miss Coleman said that when questioned by police Wallbridge said he was merely relieving himself in the wood and meant no harm.

“However he eventually admitted having exposed himself and said he had been caught masturbating in the area."

“He was extremely remorseful and admitted the likelihood of him being caught doing it was high and said it was like watching porn and it happened around the times he did not see his girlfriend.

“He said he would not be returning to the area and his lesson had been learned.”

Defending solicitor Jeffrey Bannister said the background of these offences were the defendant’s poor mental health but added that he was now seeking help in relation to that and had already had an appointment with Talking Therapies.

“There was a very sad incident that occurred three months earlier that had been very upsetting for the family and him,” he said.

“My client had been trying to support everyone else and had suppressed his own emotions and he believed this led to the incidents in the woods.”

He added that Wallbridge had been off work suffering from stress since his first court appearance and was genuinely upset by what he had done.

“This arose out of emotional difficulties and not sexual desire,” he said.

The magistrates sentenced Wallbridge to a community order with the court month curfew during which time he must remain at his home address between 8pm and 6am daily.

Costs of £85, a £180 court charge and £60 victim surcharge were also imposed on Wallbridge.