A COUNCIL officer who repeatedly sexually abused a teenage boy while at work has been jailed for nine years.

Ex-special constable David Cager abused the boy, aged 14 and 15 at the time, at the council depot in Hollingdean Road where he worked as an out-of-hours emergency officer in the highways department.

The 61-year-old, of Old Shoreham Road, Hove, was convicted by a jury of 13 counts, comprising indecent assault, sexual activity with a child, gross indecency with a child and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

His trial at Hove Crown Court heard he groomed his victim with cash and gifts and abused him both at work and at home, in 2003 and 2004.

The relationship between the pair continued past the victim’s 16th birthday, but Cager was not charged with any offences over that.

The victim went to the police in 2012 after seeing a counsellor at university, saying his life had gone off the rails because of the ongoing trauma.

Sentencing Cager at Hove Crown Court yesterday, Judge Charles Kemp told him: “You ingratiated yourself into his confidence; you invited him to your workplace at the time when you knew that the two of you would be alone, and within a relatively short period of time you introduced him to sexual practices.

“To his credit, despite of all this, the victim performed well at school and went on to university but things did not go as well for him.”

He added: “Members of your family have written, and I have read them all, moving tributes and references on your behalf. “They undoubtedly, each in their own way, find it difficult to accept that the man they know and love is in fact the perpetrator of these dreadful crimes.

“I am influenced of course by the way the victim describes the manner in which his life has been changed by the result of the offending.”

Cager had no previous convictions. He volunteered as a special constable in Brighton for 13 years until 1993.

His victim was not connected to his work.

Brighton and Hove City Council chief executive Penny Thompson said Cager was dismissed in 2012. She said he did not ordinarily have contact with the children and his post did not require a CRB check.

Detective Constable Duncan Chalmers, of the Brighton Safeguarding Investigations Unit, said he was pleased at the sentence and hoped it showed other victims that coming forward to police was worthwhile.

BACKGROUND

Cager worked as an out-of-hours officer at Brighton and Hove City Council depot in Holllingdean Road Brighton.

He abused his teenage victim while at work in the depot in 2003 and 2004.

Council chief executive Penny Thompson said Cager did not ordinarily have contact with children and his post did not require a CRB check.

She added: “We suspended and then dismissed him in 2012 and have cooperated fully with the police throughout its investigation.

“We are reviewing the full history of his employment and I plan to satisfy myself that lessons learnt from this case have been acted on across the council.

"Support is being offered to all staff affected by this court case.”