Girl (13) locked herself in toilet to escape sex offender at Antrim train station

Amos Terence Wilson (54), previously with an address at Elmdale in Antrim town, also tried to open the toilet door on the morning of February 7 this year.

He pleaded guilty to charges of having a 'sexual communication' with a child and attempting to sexually assault the girl.

A prosecutor told Antrim Magistrates' Court, sitting in Ballymena, the child was waiting for her mother at a toilets area. The defendant approached winking at her. She felt uncomfortable and locked herself into a disabled toilet "for her own safety".

The prosecutor said: "The defendant then began to continually knock on the door and rattle it, making an effort to get into the cubicle.

"Throughout this the defendant kept talking to the child through the door. From the level of his voice he was pushed up against the door. He made a number of highly inappropriate sexual comments. The child said she felt very unsafe and extremely scared.”

The court heard the child texted and phoned her mother and then shouted out for her mum. When her mother responded the child was still scared to come out and made a Facetime call to her mum to ensure the defendant had left.

The court heard CCTV showed him trying to enter the cubicle.A defence barrister said although there was no contact between the defendant and the child the incident would have been very frightening for the girl.

He said Wilson said he had acted impulsively and "in his own words allowed something to come over him".

District Judge Nigel Broderick said the girl had been at a location - a train station - where she she should have been safe.

The court heard Wilson's record included a 1989 court appearance for indecent assault on a female. Two years later at Lisburn Court he was sentenced on charges of incident assault of a female child. In December 2014 at Lisburn Court he was sentenced for sexual assault.

At Antrim Court on Tuesday the defendant was jailed for four months and was made the subject of a five year Sexual Offences Prevention Order. He was also put on the Sex Offenders' Register for five years.