MARK CHAPMAN SENTENCED IN NEWCASTLE FOR INDECENT IMAGE OFFENSES INVOLVING YOUNG MALE

In February 2016, a Northumberland man appeared before Newcastle Crown Court to admit charges related to sending indecent images and videos while masturbating.

Mark Stephen Chapman, a 27-year-old resident of Ashington, engaged in grooming a 14-year-old male he knew locally through social media platforms and WhatsApp messages. During their communication, Chapman sent explicit images and videos of himself masturbating to the young boy.

Chapman also texted the teenager, expressing that he was "missing him" and urging him to secretly leave his home around 11 pm for a meet-up. Over several months, he persistently contacted the boy via phone calls, messages, and shared explicit media.

On February 25, 2016, Newcastle Crown Court sentenced Chapman to a three-year community order. As part of the sentence, he was required to participate in 50 days of rehabilitation activities and a 54-day sex offenders' work program. Additionally, he was ordered to complete 120 hours of unpaid work, pay court costs of £60, and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order was imposed.

Furthermore, Chapman was instructed to register on the sex offenders register for a period of five years. It has since been reported that he has moved to a different address.