A TAUNTON man has been jailed for ten years for a string of historic sex offences.
Shaun Ashley Smith, 49, of Laverock Court, was found guilty by the jury of seven offences at the end of a trial at Taunton Crown Court last week.
He was sentenced for three counts of rape on a girl aged under 13, two cases of indecent assault on a girl under 14 and two acts of gross indecency involving a girl under the age of 14.
Smith's crimes date back to the 1980s and 1990s.
His longest sentence was ten years for one of the rapes, while the other sentences were concurrent, meaning the total prison term is ten years. He could be released in five years for good behaviour.
As well as a ten-year jail term, he was ordered by Judge Paul Cook to sign the sex offenders' register for life.
Smith had been in custody following his arrest for the offences.
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