A JURY has found that a Dorset man did commit a number of sexual offences with a boy.

Stephen John Randall, 19, was charged with six counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

The offences were alleged to have occurred between August and December 2013 and involved a boy who was 12 to 13-years-old at the time and cannot be named for legal reasons.

A ‘trial of issue’ was held to hear the case at Dorchester Crown Court. However Randall was not present as he had been deemed unfit to enter a plea after the court considered the findings of a psychiatric report.

Jurors in the case were asked to find whether Randall, of Wood-lands Drive, Wareham, did or did not do the acts he was accused of, rather than deliver a finding of guilty or not guilty.

They heard evidence from the victim in the case, who claimed he was given model planes, a Nintendo DS and a PlayStation Portable by Randall, who said he was clearing things out of his house.

The court also heard how the boy said he ‘felt scared’ during the alleged acts because he did not know what would happen.

In a police interview, Randall said how he had made a ‘silly mistake’ but at no point forced the complainant to take part in any sexual acts.

He added that the toys were not offered as a ‘reward’ for the acts, but because himself and the complainant shared mutual friends and were friends themselves.

It was only when the boy’s mother found Facebook messages from Randall and she had questioned her son about their relationship that the allegations came to light, the court heard.

After deliberating for nearly two hours, the jury of six men and six women found that Randall did not commit four of the charges of sexual activity with a child but did commit two of the offences as well as two charges of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

Following a recommendation from the psychiatric report, Judge Peter Johnson ordered that Randall undergo cognitive testing before returning to court on a date to be fixed to be sentenced.