Father guilty of abusing his son

Eames' ex-wife described him as a control freak

A father has been convicted of abusing his son more than 20 years after the offences were committed.

Terence Eames, 53, of Woodville Road, Hartshorne, near Ashby, Leicestershire, was found guilty of cruelty to a young person between 1987 and 2000.

Leicester Crown Court heard he also beat his wife and destroyed two doors with a chainsaw to attack the family.

Eames denied a total of 26 abuse-related charges and jurors will continues deliberations on Tuesday.

He is accused of multiple charges of child cruelty and two counts of attacking their mother, who cannot be named.

His ex-wife described him as a "Jekyll and Hyde" character and "control freak" and claimed she and their children were virtual prisoners in their home.

Doors locked

She added they were unable to leave the house as windows and doors were locked and tied shut with rope.

"You couldn't get away from him", she told the jury.

Jurors heard how in one instance Eames had become angry after she had locked herself in a room with the children.

She said he was unable to break through the doors and so used a chainsaw to cut through two doors to get to them.

"I was cowed down with the kids but I was dragged across the floor by my hair and he beat me," she said.

Looking directly at Eames his ex-wife shouted "you're evil, you're evil."

Eames legal team said the accusations were a conspiracy and his ex-wife drank excessively.

They said she had ample opportunity to speak to social services, but did not.