A WEALTHY businessman who abused a seven-year-old Farnworth girl in a game of 'doctors and nurses' is facing a lengthy jail sentence.

Mohammed Ramankhan, aged 27, coaxed the girl into his bedroom, put his hands under her clothes and pretended to examine her.

A jury at Snaresbrook Crown Court, London, took six hours to find him guilty of one charge of indecent assault, by a majority verdict .

Judge Martyn Zeidman QC told him: "This is such a serious offence of sexual assault upon a vulnerable child that, despite your previous good character, a prision sentence is inevitable."

Ramankhan fled to his native Mauritius, an island off mainland Africa, when the allegations emerged. Interpol were contacted and he became the first Mauritian ever to be extradited.

During the trial Ramankhan tried to claim the allegations were a bid to blackmail his father, who imports motor vehicles to Mauritius.

A cousin of the young victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said: "I am delighted with the verdict and while I am happy justice has been done and the truth has come out, it is still very sad for me and my family." Detective Inspector Seewoosug Kur, head of the Mauritius Central Criminal Investigation Department, flew to London to sit through the trial.

He said: "This case was overseen by our Prime Minister and generated a great deal of interest in the media. It's had a dreadful impact on the community of Mauritius."

Ramankhan, of Winchester Road, Lower Edmonton, was remanded in custody until April 7 for pre-sentence reports.