WAYNE CHESTER FROM BISHOP AUCKLAND JAILED FOR SECOND TIME IN DURHAM
In September 2017, Wayne Chester, a 43-year-old man from Salford, Greater Manchester, who was formerly a resident of Cosgrove Avenue, Bishop Auckland, was sentenced to a 21-month prison term for attempting to meet what he believed was a 14-year-old girl for sex.This marked his second conviction in that year alone.
Chester’s previous offense involved a 22-week sentence after he attempted to engage with a girl he thought was 14, during a police sting operation in January.
Durham Crown Court heard that his latest offenses were committed the previous September, while he was on bail for those crimes, when he was caught again during the police-run Operation Ascension.
Prosecutor Jonathan Walker revealed that a member of Guardians of the North had created an online profile allegedly under the name ‘Amelia,’ using a randomly selected image of a young girl approximately 14 years old.
Chester responded to the profile, complimenting her as “beautiful,” and acknowledged her age of 14.
He also inquired if she liked older men and sent an explicit image of himself.
Chester expressed a preference for younger girls and requested she send indecent images of herself, which she did not do.
The following day, he suggested she switch to a different messaging platform so he could contact her ‘friends,’ who were also decoys set up by the paedophile hunting group.
Just three days after first contacting ‘Amelia,’ Chester arranged to meet her in Bishop Auckland.
However, when he was seen acting suspiciously near the meeting spot, police were contacted and subsequently arrested Chester.
During police interviews, he denied any knowledge of the online exchanges.
Chester, from Salford and previously residing on Cosgrove Avenue in Bishop Auckland, pleaded guilty to two counts of attempting to incite a girl to engage in sexual activity and one count of attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming.
Defence solicitor Holly Betke requested a suspended prison sentence to allow Chester to attend a sex offender treatment program to address his behaviors.
However, Recorder Rachael Harrison decided to impose an immediate jail term, citing Chester’s active pursuit of several young girls within a short timeframe since his initial contact.
As part of his sentence, Chester will be required to notify the authorities of his whereabouts as a sex offender for the next ten years and remains subject to a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order issued during his previous incarceration.
