A 23-year-old man from Congleton has been locked up for sexually abusing young girls online. James Lawton, formerly of Mill Street, was sentenced to three years and four months in prison at Chester Crown Court on Friday, 9 January.
Lengthy List of Shocking Offences
Lawton admitted to a string of vile crimes, including:
- Causing a child to view sexual images
- Possessing indecent images of children
- Engaging in sexual communication with minors (two counts)
- Making indecent images of children (three counts)
- Possessing extreme pornography
- Inciting a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity
He was also ordered to sign the sex offenders register for life and handed a 10-year sexual harm prevention order.
Police Investigation Reveals Disturbing Details
The probe began in January 2025 when Cheshire Police found intel suggesting Lawton was sexually communicating with a child online. Officers raided his Crewe home, seizing multiple electronic devices for analysis.
During the investigation, Cheshire Police reported that Lawton had solicited explicit images from a 12-year-old girl. He lied about his age, claiming to be 15, sent sexual photos and videos of himself, and urged her to reciprocate.
Horrifically, he also requested indecent images from a 9-year-old girl in Nottingham. Examination of his devices uncovered 368 indecent images and videos of children, with over 129 classed as the most serious category A.
Police Condemn Predatory Behaviour
“Lawton is clearly a dangerous and predatory individual who was intent on engaging with young girls online for his own perverse sexual gratification, despite knowing full well that they were underage,” said Detective Constable Phil Limberg of Cheshire Police’s Online Child Abuse Investigation Team. “Thankfully he has been given a substantial prison sentence and can no longer pose a threat to young girls.”
