Laugharne paedophile caught in online sting operation

A Laugharne man who sent sexually explicit messages to what he believed was a 13-year-old girl has avoided an immediate prison sentence after being caught in a paedophile hunter operation.

William John, 59, of Orchard Park in Laugharne, made contact with a Facebook profile in October 2021 that he thought belonged to a young teenage girl. The account was actually a decoy set up by a paedophile hunter group.

The profile made clear she was just 13 years old “from the outset”, Swansea Crown Court heard. During their online exchanges, the decoy discussed her school days with John and mentioned she would be turning 14 that November.

Despite knowing her supposed age, John “cultivated an online relationship” with the decoy between October 11 and November 3, 2021, prosecutor Matthew Murphy told the court.

The messages quickly became sexual in nature. John explained what masturbation was, asked if he could show her his genitals, requested pictures of her body, and told her “on a number of occasions” that his penis was erect.

After sending the explicit messages, John would delete them and ask the decoy to do the same. However, the paedophile hunter group had already captured screenshots of the conversations.

During one exchange, John admitted to the decoy that he knew messaging her was wrong.

The paedophile hunters then used a second decoy account – this time posing as an adult woman – to arrange a meeting with John at the Travelodge in Carmarthen. They coordinated with a local group who confronted the defendant at the hotel before police arrived and took possession of the evidence.

Officers seized John’s mobile phone and recovered his conversations with the decoy profile.

When questioned, John claimed he didn’t actually believe the girl was 13 and said he had been trying to expose whoever was behind the account as “scammers”.

However, on the day his trial was due to begin, John changed his plea and admitted attempting to engage in sexual communications with a child. He had no previous convictions.

Defence solicitor Ian Ibrahim said John’s guilty plea was one of his strongest points in mitigation. He told the court John had not re-offended in the more than four years since the offence and suffered from several physical health problems.

Mr Ibrahim added that John had been “humiliated to some extent” after the paedophile hunter group posted a video online of his confrontation, which led to him becoming “the subject of ridicule” in his local community.

Judge Catherine Richards said it was the actions of men like John that made the internet a more dangerous place for children.

She sentenced him to 12 months’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, and ordered him to complete 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days.

John must register as a sex offender for 10 years and was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order for the same period.