A PAEDOPHILE has been jailed for raping a little girl and sexually assaulting her friend.

John Mensah, 48, of Broadcoombe, South Croydon, was a trusted family friend when he took the girls on a day out, but he was found guilty of abuse on nine separate counts.

Croydon Crown Court heard Mensah took the pair to a fast-food restaurant before the assaults on April 22 last year.

The court heard one of the children spoke about the ordeal to her mother, who then raised the alarm with police.

Mensah was arrested by officers the next day and refused to answer the questions put to him.

On Tuesday he was sentenced to 15 years behind bars, after being found guilty on one count of rape of a child under 13, two counts of causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, two counts of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, two counts of causing a child to watch a sexual act and two of taking indecent photographs of a child.

DC Craig Bowden of the Met's child abuse investigation command said: "John Mensah was trusted by the families of the children and he used this trust to commit awful crimes against two young girls.

"He is a predatory paedophile who will now spend a considerable amount of time in prison."

He encouraged anyone with any concerns as a result of coming into contact with Mensah to call the child abuse command on 020 8721 7407.