One of three victims of vile scout camp boss Donald Veale looked him in the eye as he told a judge: "At least he wont hurt anyone again!"

Veale, 82, has been jailed for 20 years for the horrifying attacks carried out more than 30 years ago.

Some of the sex assaults and rapes happened while he was in charge of Buckmore Park campsite near Chatham.

Courageous Steven Blackmore – who has waived his right to anonymity – sat just feet away from the man he called “Uncle Don” to tell the judge how he has been affected by the abuse.

Sometimes falteringly, the builder read from a prepared statement: “The sexual abuse from Uncle Don has completely blighted my life.

“I have struggled to cope with day to day life since my teenage years.”

He turned from the witness box and looked at “this evil man” 12 times while recounting the problems of alcoholism, broken relationships and suicide attempts.

After breaking down and crying, he told Judge Adele Williams: “I hope that now the case is over I will finally be able to move on with my life knowing Uncle Don will never be able to hurt anyone again and that is such a relief.”

Two other victims of the paedophile also revealed how their lives had been wrecked by the predator who managed the Kent County Council and Scout Association-run campsite near Chatham, where some of the offences took place.

Veale, who lives on a farm in Gibraltar Lane in Hawkinge, denied the sex offences involving three youngsters.

Prosecutor John O’Higgins said Veale had also been a manager of a care home in Romney Marsh, which has since closed down.

He said: “These are allegations of historic sexual abuse of three children by this defendant when he was in a position of trust.

"The sexual abuse from Uncle Don has completely blighted my life" - Victim Steven Blackmore

“During this period, Veale was the director of children’s activities at Buckmore Park, which was run on behalf of the Scouts."

Mr O’Higgins revealed Veale, a qualified masseur, had offered “chocolate as a treat" after some of the incidences.

The prosecutor told the jury that two victims had complained but had not been believed.

One of the youngsters had even complained to social services about Veale’s behaviour on his boat in Folkestone Harbour but no charges had been brought at the time.

Judge Williams told Veale – who sat shaking his head when his victims’ impact statements were read - that their accounts showed the extreme distress and psychological damage he had caused.

She said he was an “intelligent but manipulative” man who had shown no remorse or insight into what he had done.

His barrister, Oliver Saxby QC told the judge: “He is still in denial about committing the offences.”

As the judge announced the 20 year sentence, the victims hugged each other.