DAVID BADHAM CAUGHT IN MILFORD HAVEN PAEDOPHILE SCANDAL INVOLVING CARMARTHEN UNDERCOVER POLICE OPERATION

In a disturbing case that has shocked the community of Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, a local businessman named David Richard Badham has been exposed for engaging in highly inappropriate and illegal online communications with someone he believed to be a young teenager. The incident, which unfolded over several months, was part of a covert police operation aimed at apprehending individuals involved in child exploitation.

According to court records from Swansea Crown Court, Badham, aged 52, was actively participating in online chats with an individual he thought was a 14-year-old boy. Unbeknownst to him, the person he was communicating with was an undercover police officer operating as part of an investigation in Northern Ireland. The conversations, which took place between January 2019 and June 2019, quickly turned sexualized and explicit, with Badham making numerous graphic and disturbing remarks about his intentions.

Prosecutor Stephen Rees outlined that Badham repeatedly expressed a desire to engage in sexual activities with the supposed minor. He sent a series of explicit messages detailing what he wanted to do to the boy and what sexual acts he wished the boy to perform on him. Despite being informed that the individual was only 14 years old, Badham requested photographs of the boy’s genitals and even sent videos depicting a man, believed to be himself, performing a sexual act.

One particularly alarming message from June revealed Badham’s plan to meet the boy in Carmarthen. He instructed the young teen to catch a train to the town and suggested they meet in the back of his Volkswagen van to “play,” advising the boy to wear shorts but no underwear. These exchanges demonstrated a clear intent to commit illegal acts involving a minor.

Following these disturbing communications, Badham was arrested on July 16 of the previous year. He was subsequently charged and pleaded guilty to two counts of attempting to cause a child to watch sexual activity for the purpose of sexual gratification, as well as four counts of attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.

In his sentencing, the court took into account his guilty pleas, offering a one-third reduction in his sentence. The judge sentenced Badham to 16 months in prison, suspended for two years. Additionally, he was ordered to complete the Horizon sex offenders rehabilitation program and perform 150 hours of unpaid community service. The court also mandated that Badham register as a sex offender for the next ten years and imposed a sexual harm prevention order for the same duration.

This case underscores the ongoing efforts of law enforcement to combat online child exploitation and highlights the serious consequences faced by those who attempt to prey on minors, even through digital means. The community of Milford Haven and the wider Pembrokeshire area can now be assured that such dangerous individuals are being actively pursued and held accountable for their actions.