Online child sex offences.

Workington Man Jailed for Online Child Sex Offences

A Workington man has been jailed for attempting to persuade a schoolgirl to engage in sexual activity online. Mark Adams, 39, created a fake profile using photos of a woman he knew on a dating website, posing as a 21-year-old gay woman.

Adams contacted a user he believed to be a 13-year-old girl, but the person he was communicating with was actually an undercover police officer. The conversations took place over four days in February 2020, during which time Adams repeatedly requested indecent images of the "girl" and sent naked images himself.

He also encouraged the "girl" to engage in sexual activity, specifically asking her to undress and perform a sex act. Adams attempted to make WhatsApp calls to the "girl" so he could listen to what she was doing.

The court heard that the woman whose photos Adams had used in his fake profile was unaware of his actions and was deeply distressed when police informed her.

Adams initially denied any wrongdoing, claiming that someone may have accessed his online profile to commit the offense. However, he ultimately pleaded guilty to four counts of sexually communicating with a child and one count of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

In court, the judge described Adams' actions as "highly sexualised, highly determined, persistent, demanding and controlling." He sentenced Adams to 27 months in prison, adding that only immediate custody was appropriate given the nature of the offenses.

Adams will be placed on the Sex Offender Register for ten years and was made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, prohibiting him from unsupervised access to girls under the age of 16.