November 2015

Serial & dangerous paedophile’s prison sentence reduced

A paedophile caught arranging to meet a teenage boy in a vigilante online sting has had his jail term almost halved by top judges.

Steven Thomas Haldane chatted on social media to ‘Kyle’, who he believed was a 13-year-old boy, and arranged to meet him at Hastings railway station.

But ‘Kyle’ was in fact a fake persona, set up by some people who became suspicious of Haldane after seeing his social media pages – which openly revealed his attraction to young boys.

Officers arrested Haldane, at his home in Cambridge Gardens, Hastings, after he failed to show up for the meeting at the station.

They discovered he had a number of ‘sickening’ images of adults having sex with children on his computer equipment.

The 48-year-old admitted arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence and eight counts of downloading child pornography.

He was handed a 14-year extended sentence for public protection – made up of a nine-year jail term and five years on extended licence – at Lewes Crown Court in April.

But his jail term has now been slashed to five years and three months by judges sitting at London’s Criminal Appeal Court.

They said the original sentence was ‘too long’ in light of the fact Haldane did not go through with the meeting.

The court did not alter the extended licence period.

Mr Justice Blake, sitting with Lady Justice Hallett and Judge Juliet May QC, told the court Haldane was jailed in Scotland in the 1990s for indecency with a child.

He had been caught handcuffing a nine-year-old boy outside a primary school.

He admitted to police that he intended to abduct the boy.

Later, while on a sex offenders’ treatment course, he was ‘vocal’ in expressing his view that the age of sexual consent should be lowered to 12 for boys.

After moving to Hastings, he set up a social media page which made it clear he was attracted to young boys.

Some people who saw it were concerned and decided to lure him into a trap by setting up the fake profile.

During a number of exchanges in August last year, Haldane indicated he wanted to have sex with the fictitious ‘Kyle’ and arranged to meet him at the railway station.

Police were contacted and watched Haldane leave his house, although he never arrived at the station and told officers he had changed his mind.

He also said he never intended to meet ‘Kyle’ for sex, but wanted to support him through issues he had with his sexual identity.

His lawyers argued his custodial term was too long, given that there was no actual child involved and he did not go through with the plan to meet.

Allowing his appeal, Mr Justice Blake added: “In our judgment, there is substance in the submission that the judge fell into error and reached a term that was manifestly excessive.”

April 2015

Hastings man jailed after arranging to meet boy for sex

A Hastings man has been sentenced to 14 years imprisonment after being convicted of grooming someone he believed to be a teenage boy and arranging to meet him for sex.

Police today (Tuesday, April 21) revealed Steven Haldane, a photographer, from Cambridge Gardens, Hastings, was sentenced earlier this month for arranging and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity on 19 August last year.

Haldane was caught after a trio of residents grew suspicious of him and set up a fake internet account posing as a teenage boy.

Detectives in East Sussex received information from three local people that Haldane was planning to meet a 13-year-old boy he had come across via the internet.

However, the ‘boy’ was a bogus identity created by the trio, who knew Haldane, after they became suspicious about material and entries they had spotted on his account.

After they arranged for the ‘boy’ to meet Haldane outside Hastings railway station on the morning of 19 August they did not intend to keep the appointment themselves and referred the matter to the police.

Haldane did not keep the appointment but on the same day detectives arrested Haldane and searched his home address, seizing electronic devices which contained the indecent material.

Detective Constable Rob Tillyer said; “We have no evidence that Haldane has currently committed any sex offences against young boys, although he has a previous conviction for a sexual assault on a young boy in Scotland 24 years ago but he made his intentions very clear in the web message exchanges and the court was clearly satisfied that he is a danger to the public.

“We will always follow up information of this kind, and this man will now have no opportunity to endanger the safety of young boys for the foreseeable future.

“We are glad that the people concerned came to us and the court found that they were acting lawfully.

“The information they provided was key in the investigation.

“However, we do not encourage members of the public to carry out investigations themselves, especially in such a sensitive type of case.

“They could have jeopardised evidence, hindered chances of prosecution, or most importantly have risked harm to themselves.”

Sentencing at Hove Crown Court on Wednesday, April 8, Judge Charles also advised them against taking matters into their own hands, saying it is better for police to run such an operation.

The 47-year-old was convicted at a trial earlier this year.

He was also convicted of possession of indecent videos and nearly 600 indecent still images of young boys, which were found by police when they searched his flat.

The first nine years of the 14-year sentence will be served in prison custody and the remaining five will be spent on prison release licence.

He is also subject to an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.

The order severely restricts his access to children and the internet and he will be a registered sex offender for life.

April 2015

A convicted paedophile has been jailed for a second time for separate offences relating to child abuse

Self employed photographer Steven Haldane, 48 of Cambridge Gardens, Hastings (who also calls himself Thomas or Tom Haldane) was found guilty of multiple offences 

At Hove Crown Court on 8/4/2015 the defendant was sentenced as follows;-

1. To arrange/facilitate the commission of a child sex offence – To serve a period of imprisonment as follows;

An extended sentence of 14 years comprising a custodial term of 9 years and an extension period of 5 years.

1. Making indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of child – 9 months imprisonment concurrent to above.

2. Making indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of child – 9 months imprisonment concurrent to above.

3. Making indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of child – 4 months imprisonment concurrent to above.

4. Making indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of child – 4 months imprisonment concurrent to above.

5. Making indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of child – 9 months imprisonment concurrent to above.

6. Making indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of child – 9 months imprisonment concurrent to above.

7. Making indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of child – 9 months imprisonment concurrent to above.

8. Making indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of child – 9 months imprisonment concurrent to above.

He was also ordered to sign on the Sex Offenders register indefinitely, and given a sexual Harm Prevention Order until further notice

The court heard that haldane was convicted at Edinburgh high court in April 1991 for impersonating a police officer and handcuffing a 9 year old boy with intent to abduct for sexual purposes.

Haldane is originally from Falkirk in Scotland

On that occasion he was sentenced to just 4 years imprisonment but only served 2 years