KEITH FAGAN FROM BELMONT SENTENCED IN DURHAM FOR ONLINE SEX OFFENCES INVOLVING UNDERAGE GIRLS
In a case that highlights the dangers of online grooming and the importance of vigilant law enforcement, Keith Fagan, a 56-year-old man residing on Devonshire Road in Belmont, Durham, has been convicted and sentenced for serious offences related to attempting to incite underage girls to engage in sexual activities through internet communications.The incident came to light in June 2014 when Durham Police conducted an undercover operation aimed at catching individuals attempting to exploit minors online.
Fagan was targeted as part of this operation after he engaged in chatroom conversations under the false identity of 'Keith, 49, from Durham.' During these interactions, Fagan believed he was communicating with a 13-year-old girl, but in reality, the person on the other end was an undercover police officer.
According to court reports, Fagan initiated contact with the officer in February, immediately establishing communication and sending sexually explicit messages.
He expressed a desire to meet up and introduced the idea of engaging in sexual activities, stating, “Love to meet up and introduce you to the joys of sex.” He also encouraged the fictitious minor to perform sexual acts, which he watched over his webcam.
The police investigation revealed that Fagan frequently sent her links to pornography and performed sexual acts on camera for her to see.
Prosecutor Sarah Mallet explained that Fagan’s online behaviour was persistent and predatory.
He had also been in contact with two other chatroom users claiming to be girls aged 13 and 15, with whom he engaged in sexual conversations.
The police officers, acting on the evidence gathered, arrested Fagan at his home in March after he had been online for approximately two hours without a break.
During the arrest, officers found that Fagan had been actively involved in these illicit communications for some time.
Fagan’s defence attorney, Joe Hedworth, acknowledged the gravity of the situation, describing it as a “catastrophic fall from grace” for his client.
He pointed out that Fagan had lost his job, which he was proud of and which provided his family with a decent standard of living.
At Durham Crown Court, Recorder Tahir Khan sentenced Fagan to three years in prison and imposed a sexual offences prevention order.
The judge emphasized that the offences were not impulsive but involved careful planning, with a clear element of grooming.
He stated, “There is clear evidence these offences did not occur on the spur of the moment and you must have thought long and hard about what you were going to do.
There is a feature of grooming to these offences.” Following the sentencing, Detective Lisa Rooney expressed her satisfaction with the outcome, stating, “I am satisfied with the sentence in this case and it reflects the seriousness of the offences and the offending nature of Mr Fagan.
It sends out a clear message that despite the crimes being committed on the internet and within the home, offenders can be identified, investigated, and successfully convicted.” ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————- KEITH FAGAN JAILED FOR THIRD TIME FOR CHILD SEX OFFENCES OVER ONLINE COMMUNICATION WITH A VIGILANTE GROUP 'DECOY' A 'lonely' County Durham former casino boss told a 13-year-old 'girl' she was 'sexy' and encouraged another to perform a sex act, a court heard.
Keith Fagan has been subject to indefinite registration as a sex offender and a Sexual Harm Prevention (SHPO) order since his first sentence, in 2014.
The former casino boss received a three-year prison sentence for four counts of attempting to cause or incite a female under 16 to engage in sexual activity and engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child.
But in 2023 he was given a further 20-month sentence for breaching the SHPO.
The now 68-year-old defendant, of Bridge Street, Bishop Auckland, appeared back before Durham Crown Court today on Friday (January 30), via video link from HMP Holme House.
He has been remanded in custody at the Stockton prison since he admitted six charges on his first appearance before magistrates, in November.
They were attempted sexual communication with a child, attempting to cause or incite a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity, plus four counts of breaching a SHPO.
Miss Todd said he used one of those aliases on a chat site to contact a profile purporting to be a 13-year-old girl, 'Lottie', but, in reality, it was posted by a decoy from a paedophile-hunting group, Child Online Enforcer Protection (COEP).
Fagan told the fictional girl she was "gorgeous, sexy and attractive" and immediately began asking intimate questions, saying he was aroused by her.
On another site he contacted the profile also posted by a decoy of another young girl, 'Violet Barclay', and soon turned the conversation to a sexual nature in which he urged her to perform a sex act on herself.
He also sent a picture to 'her' of him performing a sex act on himself.
COEP contacted a Scottish child protection team, informing them of Fagan's activities and asking them to apprehend him.
They confronted Fagan on his doorstep, on November 5, having informed police, who arrived shortly afterwards.
The officers asked Fagan for his electronic devices and he told them he had previously handed them to police, but a search uncovered a lap-top computer under his bed.
Examination revealed his use of the aliases and the online activity.
Having made his admissions at his first court appearance, the defendant has spent almost three months on remand in custody.
Robin Turton, in mitigation, said Fagan attributed his behaviour to "isolation" and "loneliness", but his probation report author said it appeared to be a case of "minimisation" of his actions by the defendant.
Mr Turton said Fagan denied the claim of "minimisation", but explained it by saying he was trying to explain his activities to himself.
"Up to 2014 he led a blameless life, having spent 12 years in the Army and worked in various other jobs since." Mr Turton said even since his admission to custody Fagan has maintained his industrious nature, which he intends to continue for the rest of his sentence.
He also intends to work with services available to him in custody to address his issues by taking relevant programmes, while he is also receiving medication for mental health problems from which he suffers.
Judge Nathan Adams told Fagan that "notwithstanding" his two previous terms of imprisonment, "you were again on your computer, once more breaching the order", accessing apps for chat sites without informing his offender risk manager.
"It wasn't to simply chat with adults online, it was again an attempt to chat to children and engage in sexual chat with what you thought were children." The judge added that it was aggravated by the defendant's record over the last dozen years.
Imposing a 28-month prison sentence, he said Fagan would serve about half in custody before being released subject to licence conditions.
Given the time spent on remand, he said Fagan should expect to serve little more than another year in prison, before his release on licence.
But he warned the defendant that he remains subject to the SHPO and registration as a sex offender, so any further breaches would only result in him serving longer behind bars.
The judge also ordered deprivation of the computer used by Fagan to commit the latest offences.
