Christopher Hackett, a 37-year-old man from Rotherham, has been sentenced to seven and a half years in prison for attempting to arrange the rape of two children.

Hackett was communicating online with what he believed to be the mother of two young children. He arranged to meet at a hotel in Alfreton, Derbyshire, intending to sexually assault the 12-year-old girl and eight-year-old boy.

Unbeknownst to Hackett, he was actually speaking to a police officer. When he arrived at the hotel, he was arrested. Police seized his phone and discovered thousands of indecent images and videos of children.

Hackett pleaded guilty to attempted sexual communication with a child, arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence, and possession of indecent images. In addition to his prison sentence, he was given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and ordered to sign the sex offenders register for life.