JAMES BUNTAIN OF WIRRAL SENTENCED IN SHEFFIELD COURT FOR ONLINE CHILD SEX OFFENCES IN BARNSEY

In September 2020, James Buntain, a convicted paedophile from Wirral, was sentenced after traveling 90 miles to Barnsley to meet a 12-year-old girl for sex. Buntain drove from his home on Wellbrae Close in Greasby and had been communicating with the girl online, planning to meet her on November 7, 2019. When he arrived in Barnsley, undercover officers, with whom he had been exchanging messages, arrested him. Further investigations revealed that Buntain had been engaging with other children online.

He appeared before Sheffield Crown Court on September 23, where he pleaded guilty to eight offences, including inciting sexual activity with a child. Judge David Dixon QC described him as posing an "incredibly high risk" of committing further sexual offences involving young children, and sentenced him to 11 years in prison. The Yorkshire and Humber Regional Organised Crime Unit orchestrated the operation to apprehend online child sex offenders.

In addition to his prison term, Buntain was also subject to an indefinite sexual harm prevention order. Court records indicate that authorities convicted him not only for the planned meeting with the 12-year-old but also for communicating with another, unidentified but presumed, child victim.

Earlier in 2008, Buntain, then 45, admitted to inciting the sexual abuse of children over the internet. His wife reported that his use of chat rooms was akin to "him having an affair." He assured her he would stop talking to under-16s, but the police found he was communicating with a 15-year-old girl from Manchester, believing she was a 14-year-old girl. In reality, she was an undercover police officer involved in an operation targeting predators online.

Buntain first contacted the officer, posing as a 14-year-old named Katie, in February of the previous year. Prosecutor Charles Lander stated that he asked her for nude photos, offered to send a train ticket for a visit, and asked sexually explicit questions via messaging apps.

A search of Buntain’s home in Wallasey uncovered his mobile phone and computer, revealing contact with the Manchester girl. During police interviews, Buntain claimed his actions were "harmless fun" and showed no intention of meeting the girls. Still, an image of a 15-year-old girl was found on his device.

He was subsequently sentenced to supervision for three years, lifelong disqualification from working with children, a ban from viewing pornography online, and a five-year requirement to sign the Sex Offenders Register. He pleaded guilty to making an indecent image, inciting child pornography, and two counts of attempting to incite child pornography.

Defence lawyer John Gibson noted that Buntain, an electrician with no prior convictions, had become increasingly isolated due to his internet use, especially after his father’s death in 2006 and his redundancy. Buntain, who had been working as a maintenance shift engineer and had attempted reconciliation with his wife, had already served approximately a month in custody during remand and spent three weeks in a bail hostel.