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Man jailed for assaulting girl in play park

News imageBBC A exterior photo of Lincoln Crown Court - a large old brick building featuring arches and turrets, there is ivy growing up the building. There is a gravel parking area to the front of the building.BBC
Benjamin Garner appeared at Lincoln Crown Court via videolink from HMP Lincoln

A man who sexually assaulted a young girl in a Lincolnshire park has been jailed for two years.

Benjamin Garner, 42, touched the child on her thigh after repeatedly moving his wheelchair to stop her passing him at a new play area in Parthian Avenue, Wyberton, near Boston.

Garner appeared at Lincoln Crown Court earlier, where he admitted three charges of breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, breaching a Criminal Behaviour Order and assaulting a girl under 13 by touching.

Neil Sands, mitigating, accepted Garner was sexually frustrated but argued there was not a specific targeting of children.

The court heard the incident occurred as the child was trying to walk her bike through the park shortly after 18:00 BST on 15 July 2024.

Officers found Garner drinking on a bench where he had returned after touching the girl's thigh, the court was told.

The girl later disclosed that she was scared Garner might have taken her away or kidnapped her.

In an impact statement, the girl's mother said the park had only just opened and she thought it was safe as she knew everyone in the area.

News imageGoogle A Google street view image of a road with a grass area to the left and houses and cars to the right.Google
The girl was assaulted at a new play park, off Parthian Avenue

Following the incident, Garner was made the subject of both a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and a Criminal Behaviour Order, which prevented him drinking in public.

The court heard Garner, of no fixed address, breached both these orders on 2 November, when he was seen naked from the waist down in the village of Witham St Hughs.

Passing sentence, Judge Simon Hirst warned Garner he would have considered him a "dangerous offender" if the law allowed him to pass such a sentence.

Judge Hirst told Garner it was an aggravating feature that he moved his wheelchair to stop the girl passing him.

"Understandably, she felt scared by what you did," Judge Hirst stressed.

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