A ‘dangerous predatory paedophile’ who is on the run after being convicted of a series of sex offences against children will face an indeterminate jail term when he is caught.

John Radley, 56, who tried to rape a 14-year-old girl, failed to turn up on the last day of his trial at Swindon Crown Court, before the jury were sent out to reach verdicts.

After they found Radley guilty of all 16 charges the panel of six men and six women were told there was no reason for him not showing up the day before.

They were informed a warrant had been issued for his arrest and it has now been revealed that the hunt will be highlighted on BBC’s Crimewatch programme this week.

Now Judge Douglas Field has passed sentence in the defendant’s absence ruling that he posed a significant risk of serious harm to the public.

He imposed a sentence of imprisonment for public protection and said Radley would not be able to apply for parole for six-and-a-half years.

The grandfather, who worked as a taxi driver, abused three victims, both male and female, over a thirty year period in Chippenham and Calne.

The first set of abuse took place in the early 1980s when Radley targeted a girl when she was about ten years old.

After repeatedly abusing her for a number of years he went on to try and rape her when she was 14 years old, but she fought him off.

The jury heard there was then a gap of more than a decade before he groped another young girl, when she was about 11 years old.

In 2008 he then started to abuse a 14-year-old boy who he met after giving him rides to school.

After buying his cigarettes and alcohol he started to send suggestive text messages before sexually abusing him.

The judge said that all three victims had been badly affected by what he did and the boy had been left questioning his sexuality as a result of ‘being corrupted by this very much older man’.

Radley was convicted of attempted rape, indecency with a child, two indecent assaults, two sexual assaults of a child under thirteen and nine sexual activity with a child. He had denied all the charges.

Although the jury were not told of it, the judge said he was concerned about two notebooks containing vile stories the cabbie had written.

They contained ‘appalling and graphic pornographic writings’ of child abuse, many written through the eyes of a woman, and included the names of his victims.

“Taking in the entirety of offending and these writings I have had little difficulty in concluding he is dangerous. He is a dangerous predatory paedophile,” the judge said.

Had he passed a determinate sentence he said it would have been for 13 years, meaning Radley would not be allowed to apply for parole until half that period had been served.

The defendant, who gave the court an address in Finsbury Park, London, was also banned from working with children and must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.