Leslie Foster approached the children, all of whom were under the age of 13, on September 25, 2021, in Home Bargains in Liverpool’s St Johns Shopping Centre.
The 71-year-old man, who had no fixed address, was arrested in the shopping centre after store employees alerted police.
At Liverpool Crown Court, he was sentenced to nine years and six months in prison.
He denied any wrongdoing at first but later pleaded guilty to two counts of causing and inciting a girl under the age of 13 to engage in sexual activity, as well as two counts of attempted kidnapping with the intent to commit a sexual offence.
Det Con Rachel Roberts said after the sentencing that Foster “put his victims through the ordeal of a trial” by attempting to deny the charges.
We are relieved that Foster will spend several years in prison and will no longer be able to terrorise and harm children,” she said.
She went on to praise the girls and their parents for “the bravery and strength they have shown throughout,” and she thanked the shop’s staff for their quick actions.
