CREEP WHO SENT 'GIRL' VILE VIDEO BUSTED BY UK PAEDOPHILE HUNTERS
A judge described the conduct of 65-year-old sex offender, who engaged in explicit online chats with someone he believed was a young girl and mailed a video of himself masturbating, as “chilling.” While residing in Liskeard, Haydn Saunders initially contacted a girl he thought was 14 years old via Facebook.The conversations soon became sexual in nature.
Over several days, the 65-year-old truck driver, now living on Hale Lane in Honiton, Devon, sent messages asking the girl to send images of her navel.
Initially, Saunders told her not to send anything “naughty as that wouldn't be right,” but he later requested photos of her private parts, especially after she mentioned she was in the bathroom.
It was at this point that he sent her a video of himself masturbating.
During a hearing at Truro Crown Court on Friday, May 15, it was revealed that Saunders had also approached another girl, believing her to be 14, and the conversations again turned sexual.
Unbeknownst to him, both girls were actually adult decoys from the Saving Children’s Future UK paedophile hunters group.
This group gathered evidence and handed it over to Devon and Cornwall Police, leading to Saunders’s arrest.
He faced charges of causing a girl aged 13 to 15 to view images of sexual activity between November 11 and December 3, 2024, and two counts of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a minor.
Saunders was convicted on all charges at Bodmin Magistrates’ Court in April and was subsequently sent to the Crown Court for sentencing.
His lawyer highlighted that Saunders had begun to address his behavior, stating: “He has lost everything.
After his arrest, his 15-year relationship ended.
He was required to leave his home and lost his employment.
His family effectively disowned him.” He had since relocated and now works as a truck driver.
Judge Simon Carr considered Saunders’s lack of previous convictions and his efforts to reform but emphasized that the severity of his actions warranted imprisonment.
“You sent a video of yourself masturbating.
How a 65-year-old man can do this to a child is truly chilling,” Judge Carr remarked.
“If it had involved a real child, the consequences would be devastating.
Yet, you persisted in this behavior with another girl.” He also noted that Saunders had attempted to convince the decoy children to delete their chat histories, making the case more serious.
Although no actual child was harmed, the judge stated that the gravity of the offences justified a custodial sentence.
Saunders was sentenced to 15 months in prison, placed on the sex offenders’ register, and subject to a sexual harm prevention order that restricts his internet access for 10 years.
