A RAPIST who went on the run for 10 years after committing a number of sex offences in Kent has been sent to prison for 13 years.

Carl Sparks, 38, formerly from Chatham, pleaded guilty at Maidstone Crown Court on Wednesday to two rapes, two offences of actual bodily harm and one of unlawful sexual intercourse. He also admitted two charges of threatening to commit arson.

He was found guilty of false imprisonment at the same court in June last year.

Kent Police said the sex offences took place in Thanet and the Medway area in 1994 and 1995.

Sparks, of Woodshawe Road, Leicester, was due to stand trial in November 1996 but disappeared after failing to answer bail.

Police said he ran a motocross business under an assumed name in Leicester until his arrest last year.

Det Ch Insp Tim Smith, of Kent Police, said: "After failing to answer bail for his court appearance in 1996, Sparks, who had been free for a considerable period of time, was tracked down.

"The sentences reflect the seriousness of his crimes and shows that Kent Police will track down criminals who abscond and made sure they are brought before the court."