A 21-YEAR-OLD man who raped a schoolboy is facing a long term behind bars.

Charles Hodgson had sexually assaulted his frightened victim, got him to take part in sex acts and then raped him at a house in Burnley, last June, a jury had been told.

Hodgson, then 20, and who had had an all-day drinking session before he struck, had warned the boy not to tell anybody what had happened.

But the day after his ordeal, the victim had told two female school friends what had gone on. One had told her mother and police were called after the boy's teacher took him to one side at his school in Burnley and asked him what had happened, the town's crown court heard.

The hearing had been told how the defendant was arrested by the police and gave a “number of different versions of events” when he was questioned.

Hodgson, of Thurston Street, Burnley, was yesterday found guilty of rape, sexual assault and two charges of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, after a four-day trial. He had denied the allegations against him.

The defendant was remanded in custody by Judge Christopher Cornwall for a pre-sentence report and he will be sentenced at Preston Crown Court in the week starting March 11.

The judge said that the probation service would carry out a risk assessment on Hodgson. Judge Cornwall warned the defendant “a custodial sentence of some length is unavoidable”.

He told Hodgson: “You have been convicted of extremely serious sexual offences.

“It was utterly compelling evidence from the boy.

“You exploited his vulnerability and you then lacked the guts to admit what you had done, causing your barrister to put really hurtful allegations to him, which the jury has seen through.”