A SO-CALLED paedophile hunter accused of using excessive force to apprehend a child sex offender told police he was 'not sorry' afterwards, a court heard.

Shane Brannigan said he had been sexually abused as a child and had the 'right' to exact revenge on paedophiles.

The 41-year-old is alleged to have carried out a Wild West-style citizen's arrest of Bournemouth man Andrew Vaughan who he had caught in a sting operation.

Vaughan, 48, sent lewd videos of himself to what he thought was an underage girl when it fact it was Brannigan's organisation.

Although Vaughan was later convicted of child sex offences, Brannigan was accused of going over the top when confronting him.

The 'vigilante' is said to have put Vaughan in a headlock and punched him in the ribs and head while he held him in his car for 30 minutes until the police arrived.

Brannigan was arrested and charged with false imprisonment and has gone on trial at Bournemouth Crown Court.

The jury heard extracts from Brannigan's police interview.

He was asked by investigating officer David Wilkins what right he had to arrest Vaughan.

Brannigan, who has waived his right to anonymity, said: "I was raped...as a young child and you're asking me what right I have?

"The scars will stay with me until the day I am in a hole. So no I am not sorry."

He added that Vaughan had 'committed a crime' and said he did not want to let him out of the car 'in case he went into his house and hid evidence'.

Mr Wilkins also asked why he did not call the police, to which Brannigan replied he had dialled 999 but the operator had instructed him not to call back.

He said: "I do not value authority yet alone respect it.

"I am anti-authoritarian, I hate the police, I hate the government and I hate the system in general.

"My plan is to bring the f****** lot down."

The court has heard how Brannigan travelled from his home in Pontefract, West Yorks, to Bournemouth, on October 25, 2017, after catching Vaughan in an online sting operation.

He and a colleague waited for Vaughan to arrive home from work before forcing their way into his car to detain him.

The convicted sex offender has told the jury he feared for his life and was relieved when the police turned up to arrest him.

Robert Bryan, prosecuting, told the court the CPS had to bring charges of false imprisonment against "vigilante" Brannigan.

He said: "People can't put themselves above the law and become vigilantes. We have police officers for a reason - this is not the Wild West.

"This is still the case no matter how unpalatable the offence is.

"Nobody is going to shy away from what Mr Vaughan was convicted of but we cannot condone people acting in the way Mr Brannigan acted. This is why the Crown has brought this case against him."

Brannigan denies false imprisonment and the trial continues.