A PAEDOPHILE who made his victims’ lives a “nightmare” has been jailed for 20 years for a catalogue of sex offences.

Raymond Galbraith, aged 60, formerly of Farnworth, was found guilty yesterday at Bolton Crown Court of 15 counts of sexual abuse, including rape, against two children over five years in the 1990s.

Henry Blackshaw, prosecuting, said Galbraith’s female victim felt she had been “reborn” after finding the strength to go through a trial and now feels confident enough to leave the house.

His male victim said in a victim impact statement that he grew up wanting to be “courageous and strong” after Galbraith took those traits from him as a child. He added that the defendant ruined his childhood.

Galbraith raped the girl when she was 12 and 13 and forced the boy to carry out sex acts on the girl while he watched.

The boy and girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were also forced to perform sex acts on Galbraith.

He would also watch his friend, who has since died, carry out sexual acts on the girl.

The crimes came to light when the woman revealed to a psychologist on her 17th session the abuse she had suffered as a child. Both children were also said to have been physically abused by Galbraith.

Mr Blackshaw said: “Galbraith would tell the girl it was their little secret — in her confused state she thought she was special to him.”

Wayne Jackson, defending, said Galbraith’s prison life is impacted by his lack of mobility caused by a running accident in 2008.

Judge Peter Davies, sentencing, said: “This was sexual corruption and exploitation of the most grotesque kind.

You familiarised them with your perverted actions. You made their lives a nightmare.”

Galbraith was jailed for 20 years, put on a list barring him from working with children and vulnerable adults, and was ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register for life.