Man who raped baby has jail term increased

LONDON, June 8 (Reuters) A man who raped a 12-week-old baby his girlfriend was baby-sitting had his jail term increased and might never be released after the Court of Appeal today ruled his original sentence was too lenient.

In January, Alan Webster, 40, was jailed for life and ordered to serve at least six years in jail after he admitted the horrific attack in which he had used the baby girl as a ''sex toy''.

Tanya French, his 20-year-old girlfriend, was given a five-year term with an extended licence period of five years for her part in the crime.

The country's top judge Lord Phillips, the Lord Chief Justice, backed by four other judges, today ruled Webster should serve eight years behind bars before being considered for parole.

''His sentence was life imprisonment and such was his depravity that it is questionable whether the Parole Board would ever consider that he should be released,'' Phillips said.

However, the court refused to increase the sentence imposed on French.

''The court considers that, having regard in particular to her youth and to the fact that she had been corrupted by Webster, her sentence fell within the range that was properly open to the judge and should not be disturbed,'' Phillips said.

The judge added the method of calculating the minimum term that offenders such as Webster should serve before being considered for parole should be reconsidered by the Sentencing Guidelines Council ''as a matter of urgency''.

Phillips said Webster and French were guilty of a ''horrifying depravity'' in which they had used the girl who had been entrusted to the care of French as a baby-sitter as a ''sex toy''.

The government's appeal was launched by its top legal adviser Attorney General Lord Goldsmith, who argued the pair should have been given longer sentences.

''It is plain that these are crimes which have shocked and outraged public opinion and the sentences have attracted much criticism,'' Goldsmith said.

''There can be no doubt Alan Webster is an evil and depraved man.'' After the sentences were originally imposed at St Albans Crown Court, the mother of the child involved branded them as ''a joke''.

Webster and French were jailed after pleading guilty to rape and indecent assault. The pair had also taken photographs of their assault.

The crimes were discovered after police acted on intelligence that Webster had been downloading indecent images from the Internet.

When officers raided Webster's house in Hatfield, 20 miles north of London, they found a photograph album containing images showing Webster and French committing acts of abuse on the baby.

Webster also admitted indecently assaulting a 14-year-old girl who had been a friend of French.

REUTERS KD BST1530