Category Archives: Hunting Team

Aithan Jones – Swansea

23 Wednesday Jun 2021

Posted by in Glamorgan, Hunting Team

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June 2021

Serial paedophile caught with secret tablet computer

A serial paedophile with a history of online sexual offending was caught with a secret tablet computer in his room, a court has heard.

Another resident at the hostel where Aithan Jones was living had sold him the device, which he had not told the police about.

The 25-year-old has a history of trying to sexually groom children online and of breaching court orders designed to try to manage his behaviour.

A judge at Swansea Crown Court told the defendant that if he continued offending he was likely to be classified as a dangerous offender and would face significantly longer sentences.

Hannah George, prosecuting, said in 2020 Jones was found to be breaching a sexual harm prevention order by using a number of Facebook profiles to contact a young boy and by attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.

He was sentenced to 22 months in prison at Cardiff Crown Court and upon his release was sent to live in an approved hostel in Swansea.

The court heard that on June 7 this year a search was made of Jones’ room which uncovered a tablet device he had not informed the police about.

The court heard that another resident at the hostel had sold it to him for £60 though was yet to receive payment for it.

The tablet had a sim card in it and was internet-enabled.

Aithan Philip Jones, of The Strand, Swansea, admitted breaching a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO. He has four previous convictions for 10 offences – five of which are sexual offences.

Judge Geraint Walters said only a sentence of immediate custody was appropriate.

He said in his view the last sentence Jones had been given was too lenient and in his view should have been twice the length.

He warned the defendant that if he continued offending the time would come when he would be classified as a dangerous offender.

Giving the defendant the required one-third discount for his guilty plea the judge sentenced him to 12 months in prison for breaching the SHPO.

Jones would ordinarily serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community however the court heard he has been recalled to prison to serve the remainder of the 22-month sentence imposed in 2020 and is not not be released from that term until May 2022.

The judge said he did not have the power to make the new sentence run consecutively with the existing term of imprisonment, meaning the new sentence will not prolong Jones’ period behind bars.

In 2018, Jones was senetenced after he turned up in Cardiff attempting to meet a child for sexual purposes after grooming her online. However, the child did not exist and was instead members of paedophile hunting team ‘P H Balance’

Reece Biggs – Hoddesdon

23 Wednesday Jun 2021

Posted by in Hertfordshire, Hunting Team

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June 2021

Hoddesdon man avoids jail after messaging fake underage ‘girl’ in paedophile hunter sting

A man has avoided jail after messaging a fake underage girl who was part of a paedophile hunter sting.

Reece Biggs, 26, of Chittenden Close, Hoddesdon, messaged ’13-year-old Jessica’ – who was actually a fake decoy account set-up by the paedophile hunting group Justice4Kids – on a number of occasions between March 20 and April 28, 2018.

In a sentencing hearing at St Albans Crown Court on Friday (June 4), Biggs was given a suspended prison sentence after previously pleading guilty to an attempt to engage in sexual communication with a child.

Prosecuting, Richard Whitcombe told the court how Biggs made an approach to ‘Jessica’ and asked her how old she was.

She replied 13 while he told her he was 23, which was correct at the time.

Biggs then continued to contact her, paying her compliments and telling her she was “beautiful” and “fit”, the court heard, while not knowing it was in fact an undercover account.

In the early stage of the exchanges, Biggs also asked the ‘girl’ to send a photograph of her belly, an area that “seemed to be a particular point of attraction”.

No such photos were ever sent.

Communication then became more focused on what he wanted to do, and he said how he would “love to have sex with her”.

Biggs, who had no previous convictions, also sent a photo of himself saying he wasn’t particularly good looking and that he loved her, “not as a girlfriend but as a friend”.

On April 28, 2018, Biggs went to meet with who he thought was the ‘girl’ in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, but is said to have changed his mind when he got there and avoided the meeting.

The representatives of the paedophile hunting group contacted the police to say that Mr Biggs was with them as they saw him near some shops.

A mobile phone and screenshots were given to police and the devices seized.

Later that day Biggs was interviewed by officers when he told them he was going to meet her “to tell her it was wrong to meet up and that it wasn’t for any sexual meeting”, the court heard.

Judge Kay QC sentenced Biggs to a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for two years.

He was also ordered to complete a sex offender programme requirement as well as 30 days of rehabilitation.

He will be on the sex offender register for 10 years and the sexual harm prevention order for five years.

The phone will also be destroyed.

Steven Fairhurst – Tottington

23 Wednesday Jun 2021

Posted by in Greater Manchester, Hunting Team

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June 2021

Pervert caught by paedophile hunters 

A “pathetic pervert” was snared by a group of paedophile hunters after he begged ‘a 14-year-old girl’ to take off her knickers.

Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard how Steven Fairhurst, 36, thought he was talking online to girls aged as young as 11 when he was in fact conversing with adult women using decoy accounts.

Rachel Shenton, prosecuting, described how the woman belonging to a group set up the undercover social media account using the name ‘Jenz’ and putting her age as 14.

In October 2018 she was contacted by Fairhurst who told her to keep the communication secret as he began to ask to see her naked and told her how he wanted to touch her genitalia.

The communication moved on to Whatsapp with Fairhurst, of Bury Road, Tottington, making similar repeated requests over the next few months.

On July 4 2019, a male member of the paedophile group contacted police to say he had “detained a male predator” after he had pretended to be an adult female who had agreed to meet with Fairhurst in Tottington.

The confrontation was live-streamed on Facebook and screen shots of his messages were handed to police officers.

After Fairhurst’s arrest his mobile phone was seized and sexual communication with another adult female using a fake account and pretending to be an 11-year-old girl called ‘Chloe’ was discovered.

Mark Friend, defending, said Fairhurst, who pleaded guilty to 15 counts of attempting to engage in sexual communications with a child, and attempting to incite a child into sexual activity, was “isolated”.

Sentencing Fairhurst, who had no previous convictions, to three years in prison, Judge Tina Langdale, said she found that his learning disability was not a factor in his offending.

“The pre-sentence report identifies that you pose a high risk to girls and these offences are so serious that only a custodial sentence can be justified,” she added.

David Russell – Grangemouth

23 Wednesday Jun 2021

Posted by in Hunting Team, Stirlingshire

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June 2021

Grangemouth paedophile who groomed ’13-year-old girl’ caught out by decoy operation

An offender who thought he was going to meet up with a 14-year-old girl at a Falkirk train station for the purposes of sex got a rude awakening when police were there waiting for him.

David Russell (41), 217 Oxgang Road, Grangemouth, had been caught in an online decoy operation and realised he had not been talking to a 13-year-old or 14-year-old girl, but a grown adult during his multiple online sessions which stretched over a number of days.

Russell appeared at Falkirk Sheriff Court last Thursday having been found guilty of attempting to communicate in a sexual manner with a person he believed to be 13-years-old for the purposes of sexual gratification between August 27 and September 10, 2018.

He was also found to have made arrangements to meet up with someone he believed to be a 14-year-old girl with the intent to have sex with her at Grahamston Railway Station, Meeks Road, Falkirk on September 10, 2018.

The court heard Russell, who was said to live a “relatively solitary life” and was a medium risk of re-offending, claimed there had been some level of entrapment involved in the case.

Sheriff Derek Livingston, who noted Russell seemed to be in denial over the offences, said: “With considerable hesitation I’m not going to impose a custodial sentence today. You have kept out of trouble for the last three years and it does appear this was out of character for you.”

Russell, whose name was added to the sex offenders register for five years, was placed on a supervised community payback order for three years with a conduct requirement he have no contact with anyone under the age of 16 without an adult being present and was to stay away from places like play parks and schools where children gather.

He was also banned from any devices that can access the internet and disguise search history.

Sheriff Livingston also ordered Russell to complete 240 hours unpaid work within 12 months and placed him on a restriction of liberty order, meaning he must remain in his home between 7pm and 7am for the next six months.

Raymond Carpenter – Oldham

22 Tuesday Jun 2021

Posted by in Greater Manchester, Hunting Team

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June 2021

Paedophile hunters catch man who thought he was meeting 13-year-old girl for sex

A father who attempted to meet up with a ’13-year-old girl’ for sex was left ‘humiliated’ as he was instead met with a group of paedophile hunters – who proceeded to live stream their confrontation.

40-year-old Raymond Carpenter had pre-arranged to meet what he thought was a ‘child’ at Piccadilly station in Manchester

He had previously sent the ‘girl’, who was actually in fact an adult woman using a ‘fake’ account, a picture of his genitals and had sent sexualised messages online.

A court heard how Carpenter had been left ‘humiliated’ as the group, known as the Elusive Child Protection Unit, published a live stream of the confrontation on social media platform Facebook.

The video, in which Carpenter claims he ‘made a mistake’, has since been viewed over 250,000 times.

Now Carpenter, a father-of-four, has been jailed for two years. 

Carpenter, from Oldham, began chatting with the ‘girl’, known as Kimberley, asking her ‘are you a good girl or naughty?’

During the conversation the ‘girl’ told him she was 13.

The chat became sexual and he asked whether she had seen a ‘man’s bits’, and if she had ever ‘played with herself’.

When Carpenter asked if she wanted to see ‘under his boxer shorts’, the girl said she was worried she might get in trouble.

He said if the girl deleted their chats then no-one else would know, Minshull Street Crown Court heard.

Carpenter again asked if she wanted to see his genitals, and he sent a picture.

He also sent a picture of him holding a snake, saying ‘it was as big as his privates’.

Carpenter told the ‘child’ he wanted to have sex with her, later asking to meet up.

He said he would ‘only do dirty things if she wanted to’.

He asked her to wear red knickers as he ‘liked’ the colour.

The decoy account passed the details of the arranged meet up to other members of the group.

About ten people confronted Carpenter at the station on July 5 last year, and the police also attended.

Mr Elias said Carpenter is remorseful and has no previous convictions for sexual offences.

“He found it exciting and fell into the trap that was prepared for him,” he said.

“His world has crashed down around him.

“He was in tears this afternoon as I went through the sentencing guidelines.

“He is desperately sorry.”

The barrister appealed for Carpenter to be spared jail, noting there was no real victim.

“There is no good in locking him up, only harm to him and humiliation,” Mr Elias said.

“He has been thoroughly humiliated already by these paedophile hunters.

“It is an offence in his own fantasy, an offence in his mind.

“It was never going to happen.”

But the judge, Recorder Michael Duck QC, said the offence was too serious.

Carpenter, of Oldham Road, Failsworth, pleaded guilty to attempting to engage in sexual communications with a child, attempting to incite a child into sexual activity, and arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence.