A schoolboy with Tourette's caught the attention of a man when he said a sexual remark in public, a jury has been told.

The 14-year-old had shouted 'suck d***' which was met with the comment: "Come to my house and I will" from 66-year-old Roy Coxhead, it was claimed.

Reading Crown Court heard how Coxhead from Erleigh Road, Reading, 'plied the boy with drinks and pocket money to buy cigarettes'.

He denies two counts of indecent with a child; three counts of indecent assault on a male person; attempting to commit a serious sexual offence; perverting the course of justice; four counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

In a police statement written at the time, the schoolboy said: "Because of my Tourette’s, I shouted ‘suck d***’ - he said ‘come to my house and I will'.’’

At a trial today (February 24), prosecutor Timothy Naik outlined the events which led to Coxhead's arrest in 2017.

He said: "One day the victim describes having a Tourette’s outburst and saying ‘suck my d***’ and being approached by the defendant.

"He attended the defendant's flat in the evening and the defendant immediately started touching his penis. He was offered £30 but he refused."

The jury heard that when asked why he returned to the defendant's house, the boy stated: "Because he gave me free drinks, I thought I’d go around there and be nice to him."

On another occasion, the defendant put his hands down the boy's trousers before putting £30 in his pocket and giving him a stash of cannabis to take with him, the jury heard.

Coxhead was arrested on June 20, 2017, but it took several years for the case to come to trial after the lead police officer "failed to pursue the case with sufficient urgency and determination," the jury heard.

In a prepared statement, Coxhead denied all the allegations, instead claiming that he had given the boy money for a school trip because he felt sorry for him but later the boy demanded more.

Coxhead claimed the schoolboy was making up the sexual assaults because he had refused to give him more money, the court heard.

The jury also heard how a different schoolboy, who worked as a part-time cleaner for Coxhead, was given drinks before being sexually abused in the early 2000s.

At the time, the boy was age 14 and freely admitted being "troubled" - smoking cigarettes, cannabis, and playing up at school.

Today, the jury heard that Coxhead groomed the schoolboy, allowing him to smoke and drink in his flat before the conversation turned towards sexual experimentation.

Prosecutor Timothy Naik said: "The abuse started when he was encouraged to stay at the flat while aged 14 years. Coxhead slept naked and regularly masturbated in the same bed. This behaviour happened two to three times a week before the boy turned 16 years."

Coxhead denies two counts of indecency with a child; three counts of indecent assault on a male person; attempting to commit a serious sexual offence; perverting the course of justice; four counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

The trial continues.