Scottish football coach jailed over child sex abuse

The coach had already been jailed for two years in 1998 for sexually abusing three boys.

The court heard that one of the victims was five-years-old. (representational image)

A Scottish court on Monday sentenced a former youth football coach to six years in prison after being found to have sexually abused three boys as young as five.

James Torbett helped set up and then coached Celtic Boys Club -- a team not formally associated with Scottish league champion Celtic FC -- from the late 1960s until the 1990s.

The 71-year-old was found guilty of abusing the boys over an eight-year period ending in 1994.

He denied the charges.

“What this case has shown is that you used the club as a front and a recruiting ground for boys who you could sexually abuse,” Glasgow court judge John Beckett said.

The court heard that one of the boys assaulted was five. The BBC separately reported that the other two were members of the under-14 squad.

Torbett had already been jailed for two years in 1998 for sexually abusing three boys in the 1960s and 1970s.