A WEST Wiltshire child sex offender has been jailed for 16 and a half years after one of his victims told a court “I didn’t have a childhood”.

Troy Gibbs, 44, of no fixed abode, was sentenced at Winchester Crown Court on Friday, May 22, after being found guilty at trial in December of causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, sexual assault by penetration of a girl under 13, and sexual assault of a girl under 13.

The offences, involving two victims, took place at a property in west Wiltshire between 2011 and 2013.

In a victim statement read to the court, one survivor described the lasting impact of the abuse.

She said: “If I was asked to explain my childhood, I would simply say that I didn’t have a childhood.

“I have very few friends because I’ve become so introverted and fearful of letting someone else hurt me or having to explain to someone what happened to me growing up.

“These issues I have are mine, but they have all come about by one person, Troy. Someone who hasn’t once shared an ounce of remorse for what he has done, or the pain and suffering he has caused.”

Gibbs was also ordered to pay a £120 surcharge, placed indefinitely on the sex offenders register and made subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Det Sgt Becki Nash described the case as “prolonged and deeply distressing”.

“He exploited these children and gave no thought to the trauma his actions have caused,” she said.

Det Sgt Nash praised the victims’ “immense strength” in supporting the investigation, adding that although the case was first reported in 2015, it could not be progressed at the time and was later reopened, leading to Gibbs’ conviction.