A PAEDOPHILE has been found guilty of a total of five rapes and 19 sex assaults on three girls.

Ian Greenall, 42, of Hillside, Burnley, faces a lengthy prison sentence after being convicted by a jury at Burnley Crown Court yesterday.

Jurors took nearly seven-and-a-half hours to convict Ian Greenall, 42, of the charges following a trial which lasted more than a week.

Greenall, who used to work for Biffa and a fireplaces firm in Brierfield before an industrial accident left him partially disabled, had maintained the charges against him were a conspiracy concocted by the girls.

But the jury found Greenall guilty of five rapes on one girl. He was also convicted of 13 indecent assaults on the same girl.

The girl was aged just five at the time of the first indecent assault, the court heard.

Greenall was also convicted of two offences of indecency with a child - he had encouraged a dog to try and sexually molest the girl but on each occasion the animal refused.

He was found guilty of three offences of indecent assault on another girl, and an indecent assault offence on a third girl.

Not guilty verdicts were directed by Judge Jonathan Woolman on two particular alleged indecent offences.

Earlier the jury had also found Greenall not guilty of indecently assaulting a fourth girl.

The court heard during the trial that the first victim had made complaints to police on a number of occasions, but Greenall was only prosecuted following a police investigation in the summer of 2006.

Following his arrest, allegations involving the other girls were also uncovered and further charges were laid against him by Lancashire Police.

Judge Woolman remanded Greenall in custody for pre-sentence reports.

He will be dealt with by the courts in the week beginning January 14, 2008.