Pervert snared by paedophile hunters for second time
A CHILD sex offender from Halifax has been jailed for four-and-a-half years after he was caught out by a paedophile hunter group for the second time.
In 2017 Scott Jones was given a three-year community order and told to undertake a sex offender programme after he admitted online sex chats with two “decoy” girls aged 14 and 11.
At the same hearing at Leeds Crown Court, Jones was also made the subject of a five-year sexual harm prevention order and a requirement to register as a sex offender with the police for the same period of time.
But Bradford Crown Court heard yesterday that within 24 hours of the protective orders expiring, Jones was again involved in sexualised online chat with another 13-year-old “decoy”. Jones, 28, was told the girl’s age but he asked if she would have sex with him.
Another member of the Secrets n Lies hunter group also posed as the 13-year-old’s younger sister and Jones encouraged the older girl to touch her 11-year-old sister.
Prosecutor Laura McBride told the court another group, Yorkshire Predator Hunters UK, became involved and they attended at Jones’ home.
The police were called after he admitted talking to two “girls” aged 13 and 11 online and he was arrested.
When officers analysed a Samsung tablet device found at his address, they recovered five Category A indecent images of children and 19 Category C indecent images.
Jones, now of West View Terrace, Pellon, pleaded guilty to charges of attempted sexual communication with a child, attempting to incite or cause a child to engage in sexual activity and possession of indecent images of children.
Barrister Soheil Khan, for Jones, said his client had been “disowned” by members of his family following his conviction in 2017 and had found himself in a spiral of depression.
Recorder David Gordon noted that the latest offending had started the day after the previous five-year orders had expired.
He told him: “I’m bound to say I do not consider it to be a coincidence that you waited precisely for the expiry of the sexual harm prevention order and your obligation to register as a sex offender to commit the present offences.”
The judge said Jones’ previous conviction was a serious aggravating factor and he had failed to respond to warnings in the past.
“You participated previously in the Horizon programme for sex offenders and clearly that has, in spite of appearances, not been of any benefit to you,” said Recorder Gordon.
The judge made a new indefinite sexual harm prevention order, which restricts Jones’ internet use, and he will also have to register as a sex offender again for an indefinite period. He told Jones he would serve two-thirds of his prison sentence before being released on licence.