Woman who sexually assaulted taxi driver is jailed

A woman who sexually assaulted a male taxi driver in a bid to avoid paying for a £26.50 journey has been jailed.

Gemma Pinkerton, from Plymouth, told the man she was a prostitute and groped him up to 30 times during the trip in July last year.

The 25-year-old refused to pay the fare and then tried to blackmail the driver when he rejected her - telling him she would report him for sexual assault.

The prolific offender, who was on a cocktail of drink and drugs at the time, slapped the man and damaged his car before he threw her from the vehicle.

Judge Ian Lawrie jailed her for a total of 30 months.

Pinkerton, who has 36 prior convictions for 64 offences, pleaded guilty to sexual assault, common assault, causing criminal damage and making off without payment.

Mike Brown, prosecuting, read a statement from the man that said he had been left "stressed" and "shocked" by the incident.

Nicholas Bradley, for Pinkerton, said she has shown remorse and felt she was at a "pivot point" where she could start to tackle her offending.

Pinkerton was caught having sex in a park in full view of children last year and was handed a suspended prison sentence in September for outraging public decency.