A TEENAGE boy who sexually assaulted his four-year-old niece has been put on a three-year community order by a judge.

The 16-year-old was upstairs playing with the girl and her brother when he carried out the abuse. When the girl’s mum went up to find her daughter she was curled up on her bed crying uncontrollably.

When the police went to the home of the teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, they found abusive images of children on his computer.

On hearing he would get better treatment at a specialist centre than in custody a judge at Swindon Crown Court imposed a community order.

Fern Russell, prosecuting, said the teenager, who was a few weeks short of his 16th birthday, and his mum went to his sister’s house late last summer.

He had been upstairs playing with the children while the adults had a cup of tea downstairs when he emerged ashen faced and shaking.

His mum said she would take him home as he seemed distressed and her daughter went to fetch the youngsters and was confronted by the tearful girl.

When they got home the teenager’s mum asked him what had taken place, knowing her daughter had called the police, but he denied doing anything.

But when he appeared in court he admitted a charge of indecently assaulting a child under 13.

He also admitted making and possessing indecent images of children after more than 146 pictures and movies were found on his computers.

Rosie Walsh, defending, said her client had suffered from depression and symptoms similar to post traumatic stress disorder as a consequence of an incident in the past.

She told the court he had been at a residential home for child sex offenders where he could stay until he was 18. As well as the community order, Judge Euan Ambrose imposed a sexual offences prevention order restricting his liberty and ordered him to register as a sex offender for two and a half years.