Paedophile caught after trying to meet ‘7-year-old’ in sick sting
A 40-year-old pervert was busted after trying to pay a child for sex – only to be caught by an undercover cop posing as the youngster’s dad.
Grooming Gone Wrong
James O’Neil showered the “girl” with makeup and clothes, even offering her father £200 and a Burger King meal for her “services.” What he didn’t know? It was all a trap set by police.
When officers moved in to arrest him, O’Neil tried to flee out the back door but was swiftly caught. The gifts he bought were seized at his home in Ironville.
Jail Time and Lifetime Ban
At Derby Crown Court, Recorder Balraj Bhattia didn’t hold back. He slammed O’Neil for grooming and attempting to meet a girl under 13.
“You discussed when, where and how much you would pay to sexually abuse what you thought would be a seven-year-old. You even booked a Travelodge in Swanwick and detailed what could and couldn’t happen. You openly admitted how aroused you were and how much you looked forward to this sick encounter. This was grooming.”
O’Neil pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to three years behind bars, slapped with a 10-year sexual harm prevention order, and will remain on the sex offenders register for life.
Crackdown on Child Predators
Child sex crime cases appear to be soaring in courts. But thanks to brave online vigilante hunters and relentless police child protection teams, more predators like O’Neil are being snared and convicted.
