A SEXUAL predator who raped a child and abused others for almost 20 years 'fully deserves every day' of his 14 year prison sentence, a police officer has said.

David John Henderson, of Coronation Avenue in Bournemouth, admitted a catalogue of sickening crimes before a judge, including the rape of a woman he had promised to drive safely home before taking her to a remote location and attacking her.

Now 54, Henderson first attempted to rape an underage girl in Wales between 1979 and 1980 when he was just 17 years old.

The attacks continued for the next 18 years while Henderson lived in the Heywood and Rochdale area of Greater Manchester.

He repeatedly sexually abused four young girls throughout that time.

In the case of one of the girls, the abuse continued for more than a decade, starting when the victim was just five years old.

In 1982, Henderson raped a woman in his car after offering her a lift home in the early hours of the morning.

He drove her to a remote location and raped her, threatening to kick her out of the car and leave her unless she did what he wanted.

Henderson admitted one count of rape of a child, six counts of sexual assault of a child, one count of attempted rape of a child and one count of rape at Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester.

On Monday, November 28, Henderson was jailed for 14 years and four months.

He is required to sign the Sex Offender Register for life and is subject to an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.

Detective Constable Diane Hancock, from Rochdale’s Child Protection Unit, said: “Henderson is fully deserving of every single day of the sentence he received.

“He is a sexual predator who subjected his victims to numerous distressing attacks over the course of many years.

“I would like to commend the immense bravery of the first victim in coming forward and supporting the investigation. We were then able to locate further victims and with their help, we have been able to ensure Henderson is behind bars and cannot prey on any more young girls or women.

“Not content with causing such pain and misery in the young girls and women unfortunate enough to come across him, he then fled from the area and attempted to evade justice.

“Thankfully for his victims and the wider public, he is now being held accountable for his actions and will no longer be able to subject anyone else to the suffering that he has inflicted upon these victims, who were brave enough to come forward and tell police what he had done to them.”