A SOUTHAMPTON man who raped a 13-year-old girl has been jailed.

Dalton Wills, formally of Chettle Road, sexually assaulted his victim shortly after meeting her when she was just 12. 

He then went on to rape her when she was aged 13, continuing to commit a number of sexual offences against her. 

Wills, 25, was found guilty by a jury in July of four counts of sexual activity with a child, one count of rape and one count of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity. 

He had previously pleaded guilty to two further counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, one count of engaging in sexual communications with a child and two counts of possessing indecent images of a child. 

These images were Category A - the most severe kind - and Category C. 

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Appearing for sentencing at Southampton Crown Court this week, Wills was jailed for 13 years. 

The judge also imposed an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and ordered Wills to sign the sex offenders register for life. 

Detective Constable Marie Leather, of Hampshire Constabulary’s Operation Amberstone unit, which specialises in investigating reports of rape, said: "We are pleased with this result, which means that Wills will now face the consequences of his predatory and unthinkable actions.

"I sincerely hope that this sentence helps the victim gain some closure and begin to move forward with her life.

"I would like to commend the victim for her bravery in reporting this matter to the police and for the courage she has shown throughout the criminal justice process, without which we would not have secured this outcome.

"We take all allegations of sexual abuse and rape extremely seriously, and we have specially trained teams that can investigate these kinds of offences and provide support to victims.

"If you have experienced these kinds of offences we can make a commitment to you that you will be heard and listened to, and your report will be believed.

"We are determined to put victims first and relentlessly pursue offenders, especially when investigating these kinds of cases."

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If you have been affected by child sexual abuse you can contact police on 101 and speak to a police officer in confidence.

Anyone who has experienced abuse in childhood or is concerned about a child can contact the NSPCC helpline confidentially on 0808 800 5000 or email help@nspcc.org.uk. Children can contact Childline on 0800 1111.

You can also visit the Hampshire Constabulary website for further information about support services near you: https://www.hampshire.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/rsa/rape-and-sexual-assault/support-for-victims-of-rape-and-sexual-assault/