MICHAEL LIST FROM CHESTER-LE-STREET CAUGHT IN DISTURBING ONLINE PREDATION IN NEWCASTLE

In a disturbing case uncovered by online paedophile hunters, Michael List, a resident of Chester-Le-Street, was caught engaging in a series of highly inappropriate and illegal communications with individuals he believed to be underage girls. The incident took place in August 2016, when List was found to have been sending explicit images and hundreds of messages to what he thought were two teenage girls, Sara and Stacey, through online platforms.

Unbeknownst to him, the two girls were actually members of the Newcastle-based group Dark Justice, who had set up a sting operation to catch individuals attempting to exploit minors online. The court heard that List, aged 41, had sent explicit photographs of his private parts along with graphic messages to the fictional girls. He admitted that his motivation was purely for a “sexual kick,” and he even made arrangements to meet one of the girls in person, only to cancel at the last minute.

Authorities were alerted after Dark Justice provided police with chat logs detailing the exchanges between List and the fake profiles. These logs revealed a pattern of highly sexualized communication, with List requesting and sending indecent images of himself. The court was informed that he discussed the possibility of engaging in various sexual activities with the girls.

Prosecutor Anne Richardson explained that the conversations began in June of the previous year, when List believed he was speaking to a 13-year-old girl named Sara. During their chats, Sara disclosed her young age, and List responded by sharing his phone number to facilitate explicit conversations via WhatsApp. About a month later, he started communicating with another girl, Stacey, who claimed to be 15 and was met through the website Skout. Both profiles, as it turned out, were fabricated by Dark Justice, and the girls were not real.

When Stacey agreed to meet List and claimed she was on her way, he suddenly backed out, stating that he thought it was best not to meet. Despite this, the chat logs were handed over to the police, leading to his arrest. During questioning, List claimed that he had arranged to meet the girls but decided against it because he had a partner and did not want to meet someone else. He admitted to showing photos of his penis during the exchanges but insisted he had no intention of meeting anyone in person.

He also revealed that he lived with his partner, who was likely at work during the time of the messaging, and that his actions were solely for sexual gratification. List expressed concern that if his online activities were exposed, he could lose his job, his home, and his reputation. He pleaded guilty to attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.

In sentencing, Judge Penny Moreland imposed a six-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, along with a requirement to participate in a group work programme and pay £500 in costs. Additionally, List is mandated to register as a sex offender and adhere to a sexual harm prevention order for the next seven years. The judge noted that the fact he canceled the meeting was a mitigating factor, which led to the suspension of the sentence, stating, “Unusually for cases of this sort, you canceled the meeting and thought better of your plan to meet. For that reason and that reason alone, I am prepared to suspend the sentence.”