A PREDATORY paedophile has been jailed for 22 years for grooming and abusing two young girls after befriending their mother.

Over a period of seven years grandfather Femi Rotimi, 66, won the trust of their mother, a devout churchgoer, abusing that trust to carry out a sickening catalogue of abuse against the young girls.

Handing down the sentence, which will see Rotimi spending most of his life behind bars, Judge Graham Knowles, sentencing, described the predator as “a wolf in sheep’s clothing” after hearing how both girls had been left feeling depressed and suicidal.

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He said: “These were grave and wicked crimes committed against extremely vulnerable young children and their extremely vulnerable mother.”

Rotimi, of Blackburn, was convicted of 17 counts of rape and sexual assault against the girls, after a trial at Preston Crown Court.

In a victim personal statement one of the girls said: “I felt like I wasn’t a person, I was his property.”

Her sister said: “I just don’t feel normal anymore because I am not, because of what he did to me. I’m scared this will have a massive impact on my future.

“There is a massive hole missing from me that cannot be replaced.”

Judge Knowles said: “Their mother thought you were a man people spoke well of, a man whose granddaughters visited, a man she thought she could trust.

“Beware of those who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravening wolves.

“You have lived in this country for 45 years and you are a grandfather. You have no previous convictions. You have been a working man.

“The fault in this is all yours - you are guilty of an abuse of power and guilty of your ability to control and your ability to manipulate others.”

Det Con Angela Verity, of Lancashire Police’s Engage Team, said: “Femi Rotimi has conducted sustained abuse on these two young girls throughout their childhood and adolescence.

“The girls conducted themselves with complete dignity throughout the investigation and hopefully this significant sentence will provide some comfort to them.”