An online pervert got a nasty shock when a 14-year-old girl that he had been exchanging explicit messages and pictures with turned out to be a decoy teenager set up by a paedophile hunters group.
Robert Cornwall called her a “beautiful girl” in a message and told her to keep their chats secret. He offered to travel to meet up with her, asked her for intimate pictures and sent an X-rated video of himself, Hull Crown Court heard.
Cornwall, 21, of Hull, admitted attempting to communicate sexually with a child and attempting to cause a child to engage in sexual activity between October 11 and 17, 2023.
Julia Baggs, prosecuting, said that an online group targeting sexual predators set up a profile of a 14-year-old girl and used a fake picture of her. Cornwall sent her a message saying: “Hey, how are you doing?” She told him that she was 14 but he replied: “I know you are 14. It doesn’t bother me.”
The chats quickly turned to sexual matters. He made sexual suggestions and asked for intimate pictures of her in exchange for explicit images of him.
He asked her: “What you think, beautiful girl?” Cornwall told the decoy girl: “Keep it secret between you and me.”
He made comments about sexual activity and sent a video of himself. He asked if she wanted a boyfriend and said that he would travel to Nottingham to see her.
He told her: “Love you, gorgeous” and made further requests for intimate pictures. He sent another explicit picture of himself and made sexual suggestions.
Cornwall was traced by police through his internet connection. He was arrested on November 1, 2023 and he made full admissions during police interview. “There was no child victim as she did not exist,” said Miss Baggs.
Michael Forrest, mitigating, asked for a suspended prison sentence to be imposed. Cornwall had no previous convictions and pleaded guilty.
Judge Richard Woolfall told Cornwall: “Had this girl been a real girl, you would have been going to prison. If there is any repetition of this behaviour, you are definitely going to prison next time. It has displayed some worrying issues and interests that you have. You now understand how serious this is.”
Cornwall was given an eight-month suspended prison sentence, 30 days’ rehabilitation and a six-month monitoring order. He was given a seven-year sexual harm prevention order and he must register as a sex offender for seven years.
“If you breach this order, you will be brought back to this court,” said Judge Woolfall. “You could easily have been going out of that back door to be taken down to prison.”
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