MAN CAUGHT MESSAGING 'CHILD' BY PAEDOPHILE HUNTER GROUP AVOIDS JAIL
A computer operator who travelled to Belfast to meet a 'child' he met online today narrowly avoided prison.Bipul Paul, 39, of Salisbury Road in Reading, Berkshire was handed an 18 month sentence suspended for three years after he was caught messaging the 'child' by a paedophile hunter group.
Paul, who works as a coder for a credit card company, previously pleaded guilty at Belfast Crown Court to charges of attempted sexual communication with a child and attempted to meet a child following sexual grooming.
He further admitted attempting to unlawfully incite another person to take an indecent photograph of a child.
The offences were committed on dates between January 22, 2023 and June 17, 2023.
The court heard that on January 23, 2023, Paul sent a message on a dating app to the profile of a person called 'Ashley' but this was in fact a 'decoy' profile operated by an adult.
A prosecution lawyer 'Ashley' told the defendant that she was 13-years-old.
The defendant subsequently deleted the conversation and asked for the 'child's' telephone number.
The conversation then moved to WhatsApp and the defendant repeatedly asked her for photographs.
He was sent altered photographs of a 28-year-old woman, which appeared significantly younger.
The defendant responded by saying 'you are cute'.
The judge noted the conversations became more sexually explicit within a month, with the sending of a picture of the female reproductive system.
He repeatedly asked for more photos, asked if she had had sex before, and said 'Ok, wait for me until you are 16.' The defendant offered to meet in Belfast on June 16, 2023, and was confronted by paedophile hunter groups when he arrived.
He claimed he traveled with his family and friends but had to move out of his home for 18 months following his offending.
The court sentenced him to 18 months suspended for three years, imposed a 10-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order, and placed him on the sex offenders register for the same period, expressing concern that he had obtained sexual gratification from these offences.
