Two men have been found guilty of plotting to commit sex attacks on a baby in Britain.

Matthew Stansfield (34) from Hampshire, and John Denham (49), from Wiltshire, were part of a gang of paedophiles who targeted babies and children under five years old.

They claimed Skype chats discussing their plans and preferences were just a fantasy - but a jury of four women and eight men at Bristol Crown Court found Stansfield guilty of two counts of conspiracy to rape a child under the age of 13.

He had previously admitted offences involving indecent images of children.

Football coach Denham, a married father-of-two previously known as Benjamin Harrop, was found guilty of sexually assaulting a child under 13, but not guilty of conspiracy to rape a child under 13.

He previously admitted conspiracy to engage in sexual activity in the presence of a child and offences involving indecent images of children.

The latest convictions follow previous guilty pleas by five men for child abuse charges including rape, sexual assault, conspiracy to rape, conspiracy to sexually assault a child under 13 and making and sharing indecent images of children.

They are 30-year-old Robin Hollyson from Bedfordshire; 35-year-old Christopher Knight from Manchester; 33-year-old Adam Toms from Somerset; 51-year-old David Harsley from Hull; and 32-year-old Matthew Lisk from East Sussex.

Toms, Hollyson and Knight all admitted raping a baby.

"Monsters in disguise"

Police say an organised criminal network was at the heart of the abuse, where men from across the country met online, discussed their sexual preferences for very young children and then conspired to carry out the abuse.

Some of the activities involved streaming the attacks on the internet, with images being shared worldwide.

The group has been described as "monsters in disguise" after police discovered that some members became adept at grooming unwitting parents, including a pregnant mother, in order to gain access to their children.

Call logs between some of the defendants discuss drugging a child in order to facilitate the abuse.

The offences were uncovered during Operation Voicer which was launched by the authorities last September.

Graham Gardner from the National Crime Agency said the abuse was some of the most depraved he had ever seen.

He said: "This organised crime group, who were purely interested in their own abnormal sexual preferences in children, toddlers and young babies, were determined in targeting perhaps vulnerable families, perhaps vulnerable mothers, simply with the view to abusing their children at a later date."

Police say they are still trying to identify some of the victims. The men will be sentenced at a later date.