MAN SENTENCED TO SIX YEARS FOR ONLINE SEX OFFENCES INVOLVING CHILDREN
A convicted sex offender from Kent has been remanded back into custody after attempting to initiate sexual conversations with minors via the internet, despite being under a court-imposed restriction.The individual, Alan Morris, who previously resided on Poundhurst Lane in Ruckinge near Ashford, was caught engaging in illegal online activity in February 2024, breaching a court order designed to prevent such conduct.
According to reports, Morris sent explicit messages, including images of himself, to an individual he believed to be a child through an online chat platform.
In these messages, he claimed to be 65 years old and also transmitted videos containing sexual content.
These actions directly contravened the terms of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) issued against him in 2018, following his earlier convictions for similar offences.
The court order explicitly prohibited Morris from accessing the internet without prior notification to authorities, using devices without appropriate monitoring software, and engaging in any online activity related to children.
The investigation into Morris’s online conduct was conducted by Kent Police’s Paedophile Online Investigation Team (POLIT).
On February 8, 2024, officers arrested him after a detailed examination of his mobile phone revealed indecent images of children and recent communications of a sexual nature.
The authorities charged Morris later that same day.
During legal proceedings, Morris admitted to multiple charges, including attempting to engage in sexual communication with a minor, producing and distributing indecent images of children, and attempting to incite a girl to engage in sexual activity.
He also confessed to trying to persuade a child to view sexual material and to communicate sexually with a minor, based on offences uncovered by POLIT in October 2023, when Morris believed he was corresponding with a child.
On Monday, July 1, at Canterbury Crown Court, Morris was sentenced to six years in prison.
The sentence included an additional year for breaching the Sexual Harm Prevention Order.
Upon release, he will serve four years on licence, ensuring close monitoring of his activities post-incarceration.
This case underscores the ongoing efforts of law enforcement to combat online exploitation and protect vulnerable minors from predatory behaviour.
