A “dangerous” man, serving an 18-year jail sentence for trying to murder a suspected paedophile, was on Friday locked up for life for raping a little girl.

Alan Morrison, 48, was branded a “very serious risk to the public” by a judge, who said he would not be considered for release until he was no longer thought to be a danger.

Two other men who also raped the little girl victim were jailed for a total of 30 years.

Kevin Wright, 38, received an 18-year sentence and David Potts, 60, was imprisoned for 12 years.

Morrison, formerly of Cold Street, Haworth, Wright, of Portwood Street, Heaton, Bradford, and Potts, of Driffield, East Yorkshire, were convicted last month after a trial at Bradford Crown Court.

Morrison had denied two charges of rape and two of committing an act of gross indecency, Wright had pleaded not guilty to four charges of rape and two of gross indecency and Potts had denied two counts of rape.

The jury was told that an older girl was forced to watch three men — Morrison, Wright and Graham Blowers, who has since died — gang rape the little girl while the others held her down. The older girl told the jury that she was hit if she tried to look away and the men had laughed at the violence.

Sentencing at Leeds Crown Court on Friday, Judge Scott Wolstenholme said: “These were dreadful offences, over a prolonged period, in which very vulnerable young children were subjected to sexual abuse.

“A particularly wicked feature of the case is that other adults were involved in the rapes.

“It is no surprise that both these children are, very sadly, emotionally disturbed and will be emotionally scarred for life by this dreadful abuse.” Morrison, who refused to attend his trial or sentencing, had been jailed for 18 years by Judge Wolstenholme in 2007 for attempted murder.

He shot a man, who he believed had sexually abused a young girl, in the stomach with a shotgun after luring him to a secluded spot in Brighouse.

Judge Wolstenholme noted on Friday that Morrison had shown “remarkable hypocrisy” in view of the offences he had now been convicted of.

He said it was his duty to consider a life sentence to protect the public from serious harm.

He said Morrison would serve a minimum of nine years before the Parole Board could consider his release.

But the judge added: “I hope the public won’t be misled into thinking he will be released after nine years.

“He won’t be released until the Parole Board is satisfied he is no longer a serious risk to the public.”

He said he could not predict how long that would be.

Judge Wolstenholme told Wright he had considered life imprisonment in his case.

He told Potts the best thing that could be said for him was that he was not involved in group offences.

Julie Ogg, of Bradford, who was convicted of two charges of child cruelty, was jailed for 18 months.

Judge Wolstenholme praised the professionalism of the investigating officer, Det Con Suzanna Jones, of the Child and Public Protection Unit, in Bradford.

After the case, Det Con Jones said the sentences reflected the serious nature of the charges.

She said: “I want to praise the bravery of the two victims who gave evidence in difficult circumstances and I hope that these sentences will allow them to move on with their lives.”