SCUNTHORPE MAN SENTENCED FOR CHILD EXPLOITATION AND POSSESSION OF INDECENT IMAGES
A man from Scunthorpe, Richard Jones, aged 37, was caught by an undercover online group called Fighting Against The Evil, which lured him into sending intimate photographs to a decoy girl posing as a 14-year-old.Jones admitted to causing or inciting a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activities and attempting to engage in sexual communication with a girl.
He also pleaded guilty to three offences involving indecent images of children, including some of the most serious category images, which included videos and photographs.
The prosecution, represented by Annabelle Coackley at Grimsby Crown Court, revealed that a Dropbox account linked to Jones was used with an alias but shared the same date of birth as him.
The decoys arranged contact with Jones, who sent explicit images of himself in response to a schoolgirl image.
Evidence was passed to Humberside Police, and the offences occurred between November 2023 and August of the previous year.
Defense lawyer Ben Hammersley highlighted Jones's previous good character and employment history, noting that his wife, to whom he was married since 2013, died in May last year, which deeply affected him.
However, Judge Richard Woolfall stated that Jones had encouraged sexual communication in an attempt to corrupt the girl and expressed concern over his denial of having a sexual interest in children.
The judge sentenced Jones to 26 months in prison, imposed an eight-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order, and ordered the destruction of his phone.
