A British soldier who raped a six-year-old girl after sneaking into her home near his post in Austria has been jailed for nine years.

Craig Stormey, aged 30, broke into the house in the Stubai Valley through an unlocked door, stripped naked and began to perform sexual acts with the sleeping child.

He was found by the girl's father, who attacked him and punched him repeatedly before calling police.

The court at Innsbruck, in Tyrol, head that Stormey had been on an alpine skiing course with the 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery in November last year, when the assault happened.

Sentencing him today, Judge Norbert Hofer told him that finding the appropriate punishment for the horrific incident was "impossible", and said among the "worst kinds of abuse of a child's physical well-being".

The girl's father told the court that he had been lying in bed with his wife when he saw someone holding a child in his arms.

I was half asleep and first thought it was my wife but then I realised she was lying next to me. Father of the victim

While his wife and daughter fled, police arrived and arrested the soldier, who has been in custody in Innsbruck ever since.

Stormey was with his unit in Austria when he drunkenly raped the young girl Credit: Reuters

Stormey kept his face hidden during the hearing Credit: Reuters

The girl has coped with the attack relatively well, her father added - but he said: "She has a very good memory".

Medical experts confirmed the girl's account of what happened.

Stormey told the court he had had "quite a few" drinks with friends that night, but could not remember details of why he left the pub or why he decided to go into the strangers' home.

He said he had suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after seeing severe sexual assaults among soldiers on the battlefield - but while psychiatrist Reinhard Haller agreed that he showed signs of the disorder, he certified him as legally sane.

Stormey apologised in court to the girl and her family.

His lawyer, Laszlo Szabo, said he is planning to appeal the sentence.

The combination of alcohol and his trauma played a major role. Laszlo Szabo, defending

It is understood that an application will now be made by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for Stormey to be discharged from the Army.

A MoD spokeswoman added: