STEPHEN CORLETT FROM OWMBY CAUGHT IN SHOCKING ONLINE SEXUAL PREDATION IN LINCOLN
In a disturbing case that has shocked the local community, Stephen Corlett, a married pensioner from Wold View, Owmby, near Caistor, was caught engaging in online sexual conversations with what he believed to be underage girls.The incident unfolded in September 2021 when Corlett was lured into a sting operation conducted by paedophile hunters, revealing the extent of his inappropriate online behavior.
Corlett initially made contact with an individual he believed to be a 14-year-old girl from Manchester, who went by the name Jennifer.
According to the prosecution presented at Lincoln Crown Court by David Outterside, their first interaction was straightforward, with Jennifer explicitly stating her age as 14.
Despite this, Corlett persisted in the conversation, moving it from social media platforms to WhatsApp, a messaging app that allows for more private communication.
Over the course of their online exchanges, Corlett managed to gain the girl’s trust, engaging her in increasingly intimate and sexual discussions.
He made comments about her appearance and expressed desires to engage in sexual activities with her, describing their conversations as “sex lessons.” At one point, he requested a photograph of her in her school uniform, a request that underscores his predatory intent.
In a further breach of boundaries, Corlett sent her a graphic image of his genitals.
It was later revealed that Jennifer was not a young girl at all but a woman working with an organization called Simply Decoy, which specializes in tracking down internet predators seeking to exploit children.
Once police were alerted, they swiftly acted.
When officers arrested Corlett in November 2019, they seized his mobile phone for examination.
The investigation uncovered that Corlett had also been communicating with another decoy, this time a girl named Alicia, who he believed to be 12 years old.
Alicia was, in fact, another decoy working with a different organization called Keeping Kids Safe and Well.
Similar to his interactions with Jennifer, Corlett initiated contact with Alicia, gradually building trust before engaging in sexual conversations via WhatsApp.
Corlett, aged 70, of Wold View, Owmby, near Caistor, admitted to two charges of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and one charge of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.
His sentencing included a 20-month jail term, which was suspended for two years, along with a requirement to complete 40 days of rehabilitation activities.
Additionally, he was placed on the sex offenders register for a period of 10 years and was subject to a 10-year sexual harm prevention order, reflecting the seriousness of his offenses and the ongoing risk he poses to the community.
