A 28-year-old man who drove to a KFC car park thinking he was meeting an 11-year-old girl for sex was in for a shock when he was met by paedophile hunters instead who had trapped him in an online sting.
Ryan Massey, from Bedford, had been communicating online with who he thought were four young girls in May of this year when he set off to meet one of them in the car park in Kempston.
Luton Crown Court heard on Monday, September 13, 2021, that all the girls were in fact ‘decoys’ and didn’t exist and their fake profiles and details had been posted on Facebook by four ‘online child activist groups’ hoping to snare paedophiles looking for sex with youngsters.
Massey has gone to the car park on May 26, 2021, thinking he was meeting the 11-year-old girl, who he knew as ‘Sammi’.
Judge Lynn Tayton QC was told that, in the days leading up to May 26, Massey had sent her a picture of a penis and asked for intimate pictures of the youngster, not realising he was communicating with an adult playing the part of the youngster.
In one communication he sent ‘Sammi’ the day before their meeting, he said: “When I see you we can have sex for the first time.”
Prosecuter Tim Forster said on arrival in the car park the defendant, who lives in Edward Road, Bedford, was met by some of the paedophile hunters and the police were called in and he was arrested.
In court Massey pleaded guilty to a charge of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence concerning the decoy Sammi.
He further pleaded guilty to attempting to cause or incite a child under 13 to engage in penetrative sexual activity involving the same girl and attempted sexual communication with her.
Massey also admitted six other charges concerning his online contact with three other girls in May of this year who were also decoys.
He admitted three further charges of attempting to incite or cause a child to engage in penetrative sexual activity and three charges of attempted sexual communication with a child.
The court heard the three decoys were using the names ‘Rosie’, ‘Sky’ and ‘Lilly’ and, according to their fake profiles, were aged between 11 and 15.
Mr Forster said having made contact with all the ‘girls’ it was the defendant who had sexualised the conversations, sending them pictures of a penis and asking them to send him pictures and perform sex acts.
Peter Hunter defending said Massey was now remorseful for his behaviour back in May of this year and had insight and could see the harm he would have ‘caused to a real person’.
He said Massey had had a troubled upbringing and as a child had spent five years in the care system.
The barrister said Massey’s mother had died in January this year after a long battle with cancer and, by May of this year he was a ‘loner’ with no friends and ‘in a very dark place’.
Judge Tayton adjourned the sentencing until 11am Tuesday, September 14, while the terms of a sexual harm prevention order are drawn up which Massey will be subject to whenever he is released from prison.
She told Massey as he was led from the court to the cells below that it was ‘a serious case’.
