A HUNTINGDON man faces a jail sentence after being found guilty of running a brothel with underage prostitutes from his home. A jury at Peterborough Crown Court unanimously convicted John Dunsmore, 49, of running the brothel from a flat in Suffolk House,

A HUNTINGDON man faces a jail sentence after being found guilty of running a brothel with underage prostitutes from his home.

A jury at Peterborough Crown Court unanimously convicted John Dunsmore, 49, of running the brothel from a flat in Suffolk House, Mayfield Road, and two counts of controlling child prostitutes, relating to girls aged 14 and 17 years.

Judge Nicholas Coleman told the handyman, who also worked as a male escort, that a prison sentence was inevitable. Adjourning the sentence to obtain reports on Dunsmore, Judge Coleman said: "The question of your dangerousness has to be considered. You are certainly going to prison as you probably know too well, the only question is for how long."

Before passing sentence, the judge also ordered the prosecution to obtain reports on the impact of the prostitution on the three girls involved.

Following the verdicts last Thursday, the court heard that Dunsmore's previous convictions included indecent assault and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

While running the brothel in Huntingdon from August last year, Dunsmore was on licence from prison for the indecent assault, committed in November 1999. Originally from Leeds, Dunsmore had climbed into bed with a 20-year-old au pair, who was living in the family home, telling her she could "do it the easy way" or she could "fight him", the court heard.

Prosecutor William Carter said the woman had bitten Dunsmore to get him off her, whereupon he hit her in the face. In May 2000, he was sentenced to four years for the indecent assault. He was released from prison in December 2002, on extended licence.

During the seven-day trial, the jury of nine men and three women had heard details of how a 14-year-old girl had been asked to work by Dunsmore, when her older teenage sister kept a client waiting. The younger girl agreed as she wanted money for Christmas and was paid £40 for the job, the court heard.

Her older sister had seen Dunsmore's advertisements for female escorts and he told her she could earn up to £300 a night. She worked at Suffolk House the first day she met Dunsmore, when she was paid £90 and gave £30 to him. She also made 'out-calls' to clients' homes.

A 17-year-old also responded to the advertisements, claiming she was 18. She worked on just one night, with two clients, earning £140. She said Dunsmore knew her real age, as it had come up in conversation while at his flat.

Police raided the flat in Suffolk House at 7.25am on December 1 last year, finding diaries and notepads which included price lists, descriptions of escorts available, and appointments. Det Con Gary Tinnion from Huntingdon CID told the court that other material, such as cash and pornography, commonly found in brothels was not discovered at the flat.

Dunsmore had told the court that he set himself up in business as an escort, after suffering a suspected heart attack. He was unaware, he said, his home was being used for prostitution.