OXFORD MAN AVOIDS JAIL AFTER STING BY PAEDOPHILE HUNTERS
An Oxford man has avoided jail after being caught in a paedophile hunter sting.Ioannis Papastefanou, of Lyndworth Close, Headington, sent sexual messages to a decoy account under the guise of a 14-year-old girl called 'Alison', a court heard.
Papastefanou, 36, previously pleaded guilty to one count of attempted sexual communication with a child and one count of attempting to incite a child to do sexual acts.
He was sentenced at Oxford Crown Court on June 17 with the aid of a Portuguese translator.
The court heard that the messages took place over a six-week period from January to February last year.
Papastefanou started messaging the account on a dating app, but asked for a phone number so the conversation could move to WhatsApp.
The court heard that he sent the account photos of himself in various states of undress and of his genitals.
Sexual messages were sent and Papastefanou admitted to having fantasies of having sex with 'Alison'.
The court also heard he asked for photos of 'Alison's' feet.
A meeting was arranged so they could 'have a kiss' and 'have sex on a train'.
Paedophile hunter group Aftermath, who set up the decoy account, confronted him on February 19 last year and uploaded a video to its Facebook page.
Papastefanou was subsequently arrested.
After his arrest, he told police: "It's ok, I deserve this." Judge Hassan Khan handed him a nine-month sentence, suspended for 18 months.
He must also complete 26 rehabilitation sessions and 150 hours of unpaid work.
He was also handed a sexual harm prevention order and must comply with notification requirements for 10 years.
He was also ordered to pay costs of £1,000.
