A dangerous paedophile from Flint has been sentenced to 18-and-a-half years after making vile comments about children and arranging to meet what he thought was a man with access to babies and young children.
Stephen Harris, 49, of Church Street, Flint, was caught in an undercover police operation when he contacted someone he believed was an adult with two daughters. The sick predator told the undercover officer: “While I don’t have a family of my own being friends with men who do sends a tingle down my spine.” 😡
Harris, using the online profile “DirtyMan46”, made horrific comments including calling babies the “ultimate sex toys” and discussed meeting to sexually assault a three-month-old baby. Judge Mills at Mold Crown Court said Harris’s conversations were “too awful to read out”.
The court heard Harris had 456 Category A indecent images – the most serious type – plus hundreds more in other categories. When arrested, he initially claimed his phone couldn’t access the internet before pointing out another device hidden on a fridge.
Judge Mills branded Harris a dangerous offender, saying: “It’s clear you have a powerful sex drive which you are unable to control, and there is a clear and present danger that, until you stop your activities, one day you will achieve your stated aim of meeting someone who brings a child for you to abuse.”
Harris admitted 11 offences and will serve at least two-thirds of his 13-and-a-half year custodial sentence before being eligible for parole. He’ll then serve five years on licence and be subject to a sexual harm prevention order for life.
Defence barrister Christopher Clark said Harris had been “severely isolated” and maintained “it was all pure fantasy” – but the judge disagreed, calling them “desires not fantasies”.
