AN ISLE of Wight man has been jailed after belatedly admitting sexual assaults against a woman during “a prolonged and sustained campaign of trying to elicit sex from her”.

Christopher Peach, of Queens Court, East Cowes, appeared before a judge at the Isle of Wight Crown Court on Thursday, October 26.

The 61-year-old had initially denied the charges but went on to change his plea in August – admitting two counts of sexual assault against a woman.

The court heard the first offence happened on November 22, 2019, and the second between May 1, 2020, and September 30, 2020.

A statement, read out in court, revealed how the victim’s behaviours around men had drastically changed since the incidents.

She said she relived them daily, and had awful dreams about being attacked, causing her to become socially withdrawn and scared to leave the house.

The victim said it was a prolonged and sustained campaign of trying to elicit sex from her, using her fragile mental state against her, and the mental and emotional scars were still raw.

The court heard on the first occasion, Peach grabbed the victim’s breast, and on the second, he pinned her to the floor and forcibly kissed her.

Peach was handed an 18-month prison term and made subject of a ten-year restraining order.

He was ordered to pay £149 surcharge and was placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register for ten years.