Five years for man, 35, obsessed with schoolgirl
A man's obsession with a schoolgirl has landed him with a five-yr jail sentence.
Paul Morris tried to groom her when she was aged 11 and was prosecuted for this in 2017.
But the besotted 35-year-old ignored the Sexual Harm Prevention Order imposed as part of the punishment.
He stated grooming her again in December last year when she was 13 and this continued until March.
In February, after her 14th birthday, she was sexually assaulted by him in his van, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.
He denied the assault but was convicted after a trial. He did not have full sex with the girl.
Mr Charles Crinion, defending, said: "Drink and depression have been a problem for him but there is no evidence of him being interested in any other young girls.
"He was in a loving relationship with a partner that is now unlikely to continue."
Morris, from Johnston Street, West Bromwich was jailed by Judge Dean Kershaw who told him: "You were obsessed with her and systematically groomed her.
"It was your clear intention to take her virginity but it was not all one way.
"On some days she contacted you but that was because of what your grooming made her believe."
Morris was made the subject of a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and has been put on the Sex Offender Register for life.
