A 61-year-old man has been jailed for eight years for the “depraved and disgusting” sexual abuse of two young boys.

Jack Spencer pleaded guilty part of the way through his trial at Bradford Crown Court – but only after his victims had been through the ordeal of giving evidence.

Spencer, of Dallam Avenue, Saltaire, was arrested and held in custody for breach of his bail after overdosing on a painkiller on Monday.

The trial was delayed for two days until yesterday when he was sentenced after admitting all 16 offences against him.

The charges included attempted rape, indecent assault and indecency with a child, spanning 12 years.

Spencer’s barrister, Gerald Hendron, said he had confessed his guilt rather than holding out to the bitter end.

Spencer had widespread arthritis and would find a long prison sentence difficult.

But Judge Jonathan Rose told him: “I struggle to find any areas in which mercy could be extended to you.”

Judge Rose branded Spencer “a paedophile and a predator”.

“These are disgusting, vile and reprehensible offences,” he said.

“If there is such a thing as sexual greed, Jack Spencer, you are guilty of that,” Judge Rose added.

He said Spencer hit one of his victims to make him comply to “satisfy his base lust”.

He bribed him with cigarettes, money and sweets.

One boy became a drug addict and Spencer gave him cash to fuel his addiction. “You had him trapped, did you not, because as long as he put up with your abuse, you provided him with the money he desperately needed,” Judge Rose said.

The other boy was psychologically damaged, introverted and reclusive.

Judge Rose said he was a “perfectly ordinary and decent boy” until Spencer abused him.

By contesting the case, Spencer made his victims relive their ordeals and endure cross-examination.

“You have at least not gone into the witness box to spin further lies,” Judge Rose said.

The judge made a Sexual Offences Prevention Order barring Spencer from approaching his victims or from any unsupervised contact with children.

He must register with the police as a sex offender for the rest of his life.

After the case, Detective Constable Ellen Allen, who led the investigation, said: “This sentence is the culmination of a lot of hard work by officers. We are satisfied with the sentence handed down and, hopefully, this will bring some closure to the victims.”