A nine-year-old boy got so upset after a man exposed himself that he texted a cry for help from his bedroom.

The victim had gone to bed but sent the phone message to his mother as she watched TV downstairs.

She found him sobbing and he revealed that 18 months earlier, Mark Turner had shown him his private parts after first luring him into a house.

Turner, aged 22, of Tallow Hill, Worcester, pleaded guilty to inciting a boy to engage in sexual activity.

He was given a three-year community order and banned from working with children or contacting them upsupervised. He must also sign on the sex offenders' register for five years.

The boy was playing in a Worcester street when the defendant called him over and invited him into a house to watch DVDs, said Gareth Walters, prosecuting.

They watched one film before Turner undid his own trouser zip in a bedroom and exposed himself.

He asked the boy to do the same but he refused, Worcester Crown Court heard.

After the victim texted his mother on January 20, Turner was arrested.

He regretted what he had done but insisted he did not do it for sexual gratification.

Andrew Davisdon, defending, said Turner was confused about his own sexuality but was getting therapy.

He said custody would not have dealt with the root cause of the offence.

Judge Richard Rundell told Turner: "What you did was a wicked thing and terrified that little boy so he bottled it up for 18 months."

But he agreed the defendant needed help and also pointed out that the jails were at bursting point.