TONY JONES OF SOUTHEND SENTENCED FOR CHILD SEX OFFENCES AT BASILDON CROWN COURT
A man with a history of attempting to engage in sexual activities with young girls has been sentenced to prison after being caught by a group known as paedophile hunters.Tony Jones, 55, from Southchurch Road in Southend, was apprehended following conversations he thought were with minors.
Prosecutor Jose Olivares-Chandler explained that the incident began on January 10 this year when a decoy messenger received a message from Jones, which quickly turned into sexualised exchanges.
The decoy identified herself as 14 years old, and prior to that, Jones had also communicated in a sexualised manner with someone claiming to be 12.
On January 21, authorities received a call from a decoy reporting that they had detained Jones at his residence.
Officers arrived, and after reviewing evidence, he was arrested.
Jones has two previous convictions dating back to 2006 for the abduction of a 15-year-old girl, during which he provided her with a mobile phone and attempted to move her from foster care on two occasions.
During the hearing, defender David Baird stated that Jones was unaware of the origins of his offending and that he suffers from health issues.
Baird added, "He regrets what he did and is highly remorseful.
Most of his online chats involved adults and were not sexualised.
There were no threats, no disguise of his identity, no meetings, and he didn't travel to meet anyone." He further explained that Jones's previous convictions were distant past, and that during the COVID-19 pandemic, he experienced prolonged loneliness and isolation, compounded by the recent loss of his mother in November, which may have influenced his actions.
Judge Samantha Cohen, in sentencing, described the behaviour as "aggressive, manipulative, deviant sexual behaviour" and noted that both parties involved were adults.
She criticized Jones for attempting to diminish his guilt, stating, "You seek to minimise your actions in the presentence report by saying you are not sexually attracted to children, and this is self-delusional and impossible to believe.
It’s clear to me you have a compulsion to have sex with young girls and you acted in a predatory manner." Jones pleaded guilty to two counts: arranging or facilitating a child sex offence and attempting to incite a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity.
He was sentenced to seven years in prison, followed by five years on extended licence.
