Passing down the harsh sentence, judges said the man’s behaviour had been “despicable” and that the accused had inflicted “dreadful acts” upon the two boys.

During the trial, the court heard the man had abused one of the boys for two years, while a second child suffered abuse for a decade.

The accused was described as “an ogre who feasts on young flesh” by the boys’ lawyers and as a “Jekyll and Hyde” character by the mother of the boy abused for ten years.

The victim of a decade of abuse “would vomit on leaving the man’s house” and took to smoking cannabis “to escape reality”. He later made a suicide attempt.

The accused was jailed immediately after the court hearing with judges fearing he would reoffend.

During the trial he described himself as a “Father Christmas” style character who had been “too good” to the boys. He also said they had made up stories about him – accusations discounted by the court.

“I have never been a paedophile. I’ve done a lot for children,” the man was quoted as saying in Swiss daily Le Matin.

As part of the sentence handed down, the man’s victims will receive sums of 30,000 Swiss francs and 50,000 Swiss francs.