Man tracked girls and then drove to perform sex act
john.hawkins@gloslivenews.com
THREE teenage girls walking through a park were tracked on Snapchat by a man who sent them indecent pictures of himself then drove up alongside them and performed a sex act, a court heard on Friday.
Using a female name, Adam Towell, 30, had earlier contacted the girls on Snapchat after using a locator map to establish they were close by, Gloucester Crown Court was told.
Although the girls suffered “appalling distress” because of his behaviour one of them had the presence of mind to video his sex act on her phone and get his car registration, the court heard.
Towell, of The Park, Northway, Tewkesbury, pleaded guilty to engaging in sexual communication with the three girls on August 3 this year.
He also admitted contacting two other girls in similar circumstances the previous day.
Mr Jackson told the court Towell used a fake identity and discovered the three girls were in Pittville Park between 4pm and 5pm that day.
Towell sent the girls four indecent photographs in quick succession, the prosecutor told the court.
He said: “The first said ‘More?’ and this was followed up by ‘Want to see it in real life?’the final message said ‘I’m close by, X.’
He added: “The three girls walked across the park and one of them then observed that they were being followed because the messages were being sent from somebody very nearby.
“The girls then spotted the man as he pulled up alongside them in his car.”
The court heard two similar incidents had occurred the day before and these would be taken into account with the overall sentence.
The prosecutor explained that Towell’s offending had made the three girls feel very wary about going out as they were scared it could happen again.
They were also worried about using Snapchat’s locator map facility in the future.
Judge Ian Lawrie QC observed that Towell had taken efforts to conceal his identity and what he had done had required forethought and planning.
“His actions have caused appalling distress to his three young victims,” the Judge said.
Ellen Mcanaw, defending said: “Towell, who is a mechanic, cannot believe he behaved in this way. He accepts that his offending has crossed the custody threshold and he has been trying to address the problems in his life. He obviously poses a risk and wants to undertake some rehabilitation courses. He is keen to avoid doing something like this again.
“He has been threatened while being remanded in custody for the past two months.”
Judge Lawrie said: “You have a good job and at the time owned your own home.
“You have squandered those fortunate aspects of your life on two occasions that was not only offensive but distressing to the victims.”
“I am still concerned about risk as sending a photograph on one day could result in physical touching on another.
“However, I take the view that you have already served a custodial sentence while on remand and have had a taste of what your life could be like if you continue targeting girls of that age. I am going to take a chance on you with a substantive three year community order, which will address and remedy your problems. If you fail, you’ll be going back to prison.”
The judge sentenced Towell to 40 programme days, 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days and 200 hours of unpaid work.
The judge told Towell that he would have to sign the sex offenders register for five years and be subject to the terms of a sexual harm prevention order for the same time period.
Towell was ordered to pay £250 compensation each to his three teenage victims on August 3 and a further £250 each to the two victims of an incident the day before. He was also ordered to pay court costs of £250 and a victim surcharge of £95.