August 2013
OAP caught abusing child in Morrisons car park in Yate
A PENSIONER from Yate caught sexually abusing a child in a supermarket car park has been jailed for 18 months.
For many years, Reginald Prater was a hard-working family man of good character, Bristol Crown Court heard.
But staff at Morrisons in Yate had a nasty surprise when they looked out of the window and noticed the 78-year-old performing a sex act in the back of his car with a partially dressed youngster.
When police investigated they found Prater had a sordid store of 1,940 bestiality photos on his computer.
Prater, of Somerset Avenue, pleaded guilty to engaging in sexual activity with a child, sexual touching of a child and possessing extreme pornography.
Judge Geoffrey Mercer QC told him: “What led you to behave in this terrible way at your age, I’m not sure you really know.
“To your family it must, I expect, be incomprehensible and devastating.
“But what you did to this girl who was in the back of your car was a terrible thing.”
Prater was ordered to register as a sex offender for ten years and made the subject of a Sexual Offences Prevention Order designed to prevent him having unsupervised contact with youngsters.
Susan Cavender, prosecuting, said that Prater had given the girl – who was aged under ten – a lift in his car and when he was challenged about what he was doing, he said that he was helping her because she needed the toilet.
Prater initially denied any wrongdoing.
An investigation recovered his grim gallery of extreme pornography, all of which involved adults.
David Miller, defending, said: “He’s never said boo to a goose.
“He’s always worked extremely hard and there was no sign of inappropriate behaviour.
“He’s from a very respected family in pieces because of what happened.”
Mr Miller said that his client had committed an “isolated one-off”.
Mr Miller told the court: “He was overcome by this crazy urge in the car park of the supermarket.”
The court heard the pensioner had shown signs of exhaustion before the incident.
Prater was remorseful for his actions and said he didn’t want to look at a computer again.
