AN ex-teacher who used his mobile phone to film himself sexually abusing five young girls has been jailed for six years.

Paul Waites of the Heights, Armley, Leeds used the phone to record his abuse of the girls aged between 13 and 15, Leeds Crown heard.

Waites, 36, was snared after trying use an internet chatroom to groom who he thought was a 12-year-old girl for sex.

Waites had in reality been chatting online with an undercover police officer.

He had asked if she was a virgin and performed a sex act on himself via a webcam during the September 2007 sting operation.

Police seized Waites’s computer and discovered up to 600 images of child sex abuse downloaded from the internet over a four year period.

They included pictures of children as young as three being abused.

Police also discovered films recorded by Waites on his mobile of him abusing the five teenage girls.

Prosecutor, Ian Howard said Waites at first denied the offences in police interview.

Mr Howard added: “He said he had been a teacher at a school covering a full range from primary to secondary and also taught dance.”

Jonathan Duffy for Waites said the girls Waites filmed were all aged 15 and had consented to sexual activity.

Judge Sally Cahill QC jailed Waites for six years with a three year extension period when he will be supervised after his release from prison.

Judge Cahill told Waites he posed a “significant risk” to young girls. His name will be on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life.

A Sexual Offences Prevention Order was made banning him from ever working with children or accessing any internet site relating to children.

After sentence, DC John Higgins of West Yorkshire Police urged parents to always supervise children using the internet.

He added: “Waites dispels the myth of a typical internet paedophile sat at a computer with a dirty raincoat on. He is a good looking professional man with a sexual interest in children.”

Waites had admitted 26 offences including five charges of sexual activity with a child, 11 counts of possessing indecent images of children, five counts of making indecent images and two counts of distributing indecent images.