A 28-YEAR-OLD man who molested a seven-year-old boy during an overnight stay in his home had escaped prosecution for sex offences when he was a schoolboy, a court heard.

After a jury had found Paul Downey guilty of sexually assaulting the boy at his home near Dursley a year ago, Gloucester Crown Court was told that in 2000 he had been cautioned for nine sex offences against boys.

He committed those offences when he was aged between 14 and 17 and a pupil at Bredon School, said prosecutor Virginia Cornwall.

Judge Jamie Tabor QC remanded Downey in custody for a pre-sentence report and said he would like more information about the offences he committed a decade ago and about whether the school is still running.

"I would like to know what was going on then," said the judge. "On the face of it they were very serious allegations and for him to be dealt with by a caution there must have been a schoolboy element to it."

The judge told Downey, of St Aldate Street, Gloucester, that a prison term was almost inevitable for his offence against the seven-year-old.

Andrew Hobson asked if Downey could have bail to make arrangements about clearing his flat and to give him the chance to speak to relatives about his conviction.

But the judge ruled Downey would have to stay in custody from now on and will also have to sign the sex offenders register.

Thanking the jury for their service, the judge said he had ruled that they should not be told about Downey's caution for his teenaged offences so that they could consider his case without any preconceptions.

Downey will be sentenced on May 24.

During the trial the court heard that Downey was a friend of the boy's father and spent the weekend with the family near Dursley at the end of May last year when the offence took place.

Downey had denied sexual assault of a child under 13 on 29th May 29, 2011, but after a retirement of just under four hours the jury convicted him by a majority of 10-2.