IN A DISTURBING echo of the Ian Huntley case a Macclesfield Hospital porter - jailed yesterday for four years for indecently assaulting two little girls - was not police-checked for four years because of a loophole in the law.

When the agency that employed paedophile Philip Benson in 2002 finally received a record of his previous convictions he had just been charged with the 'awful' crimes.

The 34-year-old divorced father-of-seven did not continue at the hospital once he was arrested but for at least a year while he was abusing the seven and eight-year-old girls away from work, his job would involve regular contact - albeit accompanied - with children and vulnerable people.

If ISS Mediclean had checked Benson before employing him it would have found out that he had been convicted of an indecent assault on a male over 16 in 1983 and ordered to undertake a three-year supervision order.

But Craig Smith, head of communications at ISS Mediclean, highlighted a loophole in the law when he explained that the company had taken Benson on its books from another agency which should have done the checks.

He said: "Because he was an existing employee at the hospital he would have been transferred with his employment intact and we could not do new checks because of employment law."

Mr Smith said the recent check was done because of a new policy instigated by East Cheshire NHS Trust to have up-to-date police checks on all employees.

He admitted that if Benson's previous conviction had come to light earlier he would not have been employed by the agency.

As Benson began a four year sentence behind bars for the latest offences the mother of the two little victims spoke exclusively to the Macclesfield Express.

She said the four years imposed by a Chester Crown Court judge was not enough for the terrible ordeal he had put her and her daughters through.

"I wish they would lock him up and throw away the key," she said angrily after the case.

She could not believe that he hadn't been checked before being allowed to work with children at the hospital.

"It smacks of the Ian Huntley situation," she said.

Earlier she had broken down in the public gallery as she heard for the first time what the defendant had done to her daughters.

The children had already given video evidence to police but she would have had to give evidence if there was a trial so she had not seen the harrowing footage.

She said: "I just felt sick to the pit of my stomach."

Benson, who appeared in court unshaven and wearing a dark blue tracksuit, slouched in his seat, smirking, as details of his crimes were read out.

The court heard that he had made the youngest girl sit on his leg while they were both naked in the bath.

Maria Massellis, counsel for the prosecution, said the girl had told police that Benson would take her into his bedroom and perform a sex act over her.

The court heard that Benson told her when she was old enough he would tell her what he was doing - and he threatened to "smack" her if she told her mum.

Miss Massellis said: "She said she was very, very scared when she saw him and is glad that he had gone and couldn't hurt them anymore."

The court heard that incidents happened on a regular basis and the mother only found out when the older girl managed to send her a text message telling her what was going on.

Mark Potter, counsel for the defence, said: "At the age of 34 he finds himself at a loss to explain or understand what urges were within him to commit these very serious offences."

Sentencing Benson the Recorder of Chester, Judge Elgin Edwards, said: "Perhaps the only thing to be said on your behalf is the fact that you have pleaded guilty. You are guilty of quite awful offences and what you did to these little girls was quite unforgivable."

Benson was placed on the sex offenders' register for life.

  • The inquiry into how police checks failed to prevent Soham murderer Ian Huntley getting a job as a school caretaker finished yesterday (Tuesday). Chairman Sir Michael Bichard will produce a report to be published later this year.