A sick child rapist who abused two young girls and a boy before having a relationship with a 15-year-old girl read a book as a crown court judge sentenced him to 28 years in prison.
Paedophile Mark Coward had to be muted as he removed his shoes and made comments across the video link from prison broadcast to Leeds Crown Court.
The 39-year-old had stood trial for launching a campaign of rape and abuse of a girl aged under 10 when he was 15 or 16 years old.
He was convicted of five counts of rape and one charge of indecent assault and was further convicted of another rape in relation to a second young girl around three years later.
Coward’s final conviction in that trial was for the rape of a boy under 10 when he was aged 34.
It was also revealed Coward admitted five counts of sexual activity with a child after embarking on a relationship with a vulnerable 15-year-old girl and told her he wanted to get her pregnant.
The court heard Coward told his victim they would pretend she was 16 and his offending came to light when the teenager’s mum reported her missing.
During police interviews, the predator admitted knowing the girl was 15 and made vile comments including “girls are girls, boys are boys, age doesn’t matter, she wanted it”.
Judge Neil Clark sentenced Coward, of Morning Street, Keighley, to 28 years in prison and imposed an extended licence period of two years.
