AN ATOMIC expert indecently assaulted a 12-year-old girl when she was on a sleepover at his home, Swindon Crown Court heard.

Martin Schwarz was jailed for a year after admitting the incident that his lawyer described as an "isolated and ugly episode" in his life.

Judge Thomas Longbotham said his victim had been even more vulnerable than most children of the same age and when she resisted his touching his response had been to swing her into his bedroom.

"Any assault on a young girl under your own roof is the gravest breach of trust," said the judge.

The court heard Schwarz, of Bolingbroke Close, Hook, started touching the girl when she asked if she could watch TV after bedtime.

Sam Butterfield, prosecuting, said he pulled down her nightdress and touched her breasts.

She tried to block his hands and he swung her into the bedroom.

"He told her to lie down on the bed. She was very scared and did so without saying anything," he said.

"Schwarz then took his assault further."

The following morning his victim raised the alarm.

"She was upset and she was crying about the incident. She said it was horrible and she didn't want to see him again."

In interview Schwarz admitted the possibility that he had carried out the assault and that he might have wanted to experiment with the young girl to see if she enjoyed herself.

But he also said he could be mentally blocking out what he had done.

Jonathan Simpson, for Schwarz, said it was such an ugly episode and that might be why he had blocked it out for so long. Memories were beginning to return to him.

"He took leave of his senses and his desires of that moment overcame him," he explained.

He suggested the defendant could be helped by a sex offenders' programme to remould his potentially dangerous thought processes.

As treasurer of the North Wiltshire Classic Car Club, Schwarz was a public figure and it was a real humiliation for him, said Mr Simpson. Schwarz was a highly skilled man who had worked making equipment measuring radiation at Ministry of Defence installations and nuclear power plants. If he was jailed he would lose his job.

But Judge Longbotham said: "It is the opinion of the court that young children must be protected and it must be known by the public that young children will be protected.

"These offences are so serious in my judgement that only a prison sentence is appropriate."

He ordered Schwartz to serve an extra two years on licence after his release and imposed a sexual offences order banning any contact with the victim until further notice. He also disqualified him from working with children and said he should be put the sex offenders' register for 10 years.

Tina Clarke