ABERDEEN PENSIONER SENTENCED FOR CHILD SEXUAL OFFENCES
A 69-year-old man named Hugh Davidson has been placed on the sex offenders register after he engaged in online sexual communication with a decoy, mistaking it for a 13-year-old girl.Davidson initiated contact on social media under the alias 'Hugh Davidson' and soon transitioned to discussing sensitive topics on WhatsApp.
Despite knowing the girl was only 13, he sent sexual messages, pictures, and a video of himself performing a sex act.
The court heard that Davidson urged 'Paige' not to tell anyone their conversations, fearing he would get into trouble.
He also questioned her about her age and school before asking her to record naked videos of herself, which she refused.
Subsequently, he sent a video of himself naked performing a sex act, along with an exposed photograph, and persistently requested similar images from her.
On December 6, 2020, Davidson threatened to send an image of an underage girl as an inducement.
Members of a paedophile hunter group confronted Davidson at his home, called the police, and he was taken into custody.
During police interviews, Davidson admitted knowing he was speaking to a 13-year-old and that he sent the explicit video himself.
He expressed remorse, saying, 'I did it, I shouldn’t have done it.
It’s my first time I have spoken to a 13-year-old.
I won’t do that again.' The court sentenced him to a community payback order with a two-year supervision requirement and ordered him to cooperate with the Aberdeen Sex Offenders Programme for 18 months.
He was also placed on the sex offenders register.
Sheriff Graham Buchanan condemned his actions as 'quite disgusting' and emphasized the seriousness of the offence, highlighting that Davidson believed he was communicating with a minor but was actually contacting an adult decoy.
