A serial paedophile from Dagenham has been jailed for six years and nine months for a string of historic child sex offences spanning three decades.

Kevin Patrick Leahy, 58, a self-employed electrician of Westfield Road, Dagenham, was sentenced today at Snaresbrook Crown Court.

He was charged with two counts of indecent assault, sexually assaulting a child aged between seven and 11, and engaging in sexual activity with a child under 13.

He had earlier pleaded guilty to four counts of voyeurism.

Det Ch Insp Adam Lowe said: “Today’s sentence will not take away the hurt and damage caused to his victims by Leahy but will hopefully mark how seriously the courts view such gross breaches of trust and privacy by predators such as this man.

“This case should send a strong message to sex offenders that despite the passage of time they are not safe from conviction.”

The offences, committed between 1985 and 2009, came to light in 2012 after inappropriate text messages from Leahy were found on a victim’s phone.

Following searches through his home, police discovered how Leahy had set up a camera to record everything that occurred in his upstairs bedroom, later putting it onto DVDs.

As well as his jail term he will be added on to the Sex Offenders Register for life and subjected to a Sexual Offences Prevention Order.