ANTHONY MCFARLANE

CHORLEY MAN JAILED FOR ATTEMPTING TO MEET MINOR IN HOTEL

A sex offender identified as Anthony McFarlane, aged 34, from Moor Road in Chorley, has been sentenced to three years in prison after attempting to meet a 14-year-old girl at a hotel.

McFarlane had exchanged more than 200 messages via the social media platform Kik, believing he was communicating with a minor.

One of his messages included the statement: “Because think about it I’m meeting an under aged girl that’s staying at mine.

That’s the nervous and scary part U get me.

If we get caught I go to prison.” In reality, the girl was a decoy operated by a vigilante paedophile hunting group.

McFarlane had arranged to meet her at a hotel but was intercepted by members of the group, who detained him and alerted police.

He appeared at Preston Crown Court on July 24, pleaded guilty to attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and inciting a girl aged between 13 and 15 to engage in sexual activity, and was subsequently sentenced to three years' imprisonment, placed on the sex offenders’ register for life, and issued with a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Detective Constable Mark Edwards from the Internet Child Exploitation team stated, “McFarlane believed he was messaging a 14-year-old girl and was communicating with her for two months.

The messages were of a sexual nature, and it was clearly his intention to meet the girl and engage her in sexual activity.

Fortunately, it was a decoy he was messaging, and no harm was caused.

This was abhorrent behaviour from McFarlane, and I welcome the prison sentence imposed on him.”