This is Hull and East Riding -- A "SIMPLE" man who groomed an underage girl for sex has been jailed after a judge said courts needed to send a message over the "prevalent" crime. John Worthington, 40, began pursuing the 15-year-old on Facebook after a chance meeting with her father, an old school friend, while her family was on holiday in Bridlington. They exchanged details and the girl noticed Worthington had become a "friend" on Facebook. She shared the same profile with her mother and assumed her mother had accepted him as a friend. Worthington and the girl were soon sending each other daily messages, which at first were "relatively innocuous", Hull Crown Court heard. Worthington then asked for the girl's mobile phone number and they began texting. The girl's father became aware of the contact and told Worthington to stop, but he carried on. "Gradually, over time, the messages became more inappropriate and became sexual in nature," Nicola Quinney, prosecuting, said. Initially, the girl said she "felt good" about the messages and responded in kind. Worthington, of West Lane, Burton Fleming, near Driffield, sent her an indecent photograph of himself, and she sent pictures of herself. In another text, Worthington suggested they meet at a campsite in Bridlington so they could have sex. "The defendant said he wanted to have sex with her before she was 16," Ms Quinney said. The girl told her mother about the messages before the meeting could take place and police were called. Worthington was arrested and admitted knowing she was 15, sending the photograph and also a video of himself performing a sex act. Anil Murray, defending, described Worthington as a "naive and unworldly man" who lives with his father. Mr Murray said: "The defendant doesn't clean his own shoes and doesn't do his own cooking. His father tells him what to wear." He said: "If he sees someone who smiles at him in the street, he will say that they are his friend." Worthington admitted causing a child to watch a sexual act and meeting a child following sexual grooming. Judge Michael Mettyear jailed him for six months and also made him subject to a five-year sexual offences prevention order. Judge Mettyear said: "I accept you are a rather simple and lonely man, naive in many ways, but not entirely stupid. "You were capable of knowing what you wanted, persisting with this relationship even after her father had warned you to leave her alone." The judge said the problem of older men targeting young girls on the internet was becoming "very prevalent". "Those girls need protecting from themselves and their parents need to know that the courts will take action to do what they can to discourage conduct of this type," he said.
Reported by This is 19 hours ago.
This is Hull and East Riding -- A "SIMPLE" man who groomed an underage girl for sex has been jailed after a judge said courts needed to send a message over the "prevalent" crime. John Worthington, 40, began pursuing the 15-year-old on Facebook after a chance meeting with her father, an old school friend, while her family was on holiday in Bridlington. They exchanged details and the girl noticed Worthington had become a "friend" on Facebook. She shared the same profile with her mother and assumed her mother had accepted him as a friend. Worthington and the girl were soon sending each other daily messages, which at first were "relatively innocuous", Hull Crown Court heard. Worthington then asked for the girl's mobile phone number and they began texting. The girl's father became aware of the contact and told Worthington to stop, but he carried on. "Gradually, over time, the messages became more inappropriate and became sexual in nature," Nicola Quinney, prosecuting, said. Initially, the girl said she "felt good" about the messages and responded in kind. Worthington, of West Lane, Burton Fleming, near Driffield, sent her an indecent photograph of himself, and she sent pictures of herself. In another text, Worthington suggested they meet at a campsite in Bridlington so they could have sex. "The defendant said he wanted to have sex with her before she was 16," Ms Quinney said. The girl told her mother about the messages before the meeting could take place and police were called. Worthington was arrested and admitted knowing she was 15, sending the photograph and also a video of himself performing a sex act. Anil Murray, defending, described Worthington as a "naive and unworldly man" who lives with his father. Mr Murray said: "The defendant doesn't clean his own shoes and doesn't do his own cooking. His father tells him what to wear." He said: "If he sees someone who smiles at him in the street, he will say that they are his friend." Worthington admitted causing a child to watch a sexual act and meeting a child following sexual grooming. Judge Michael Mettyear jailed him for six months and also made him subject to a five-year sexual offences prevention order. Judge Mettyear said: "I accept you are a rather simple and lonely man, naive in many ways, but not entirely stupid. "You were capable of knowing what you wanted, persisting with this relationship even after her father had warned you to leave her alone." The judge said the problem of older men targeting young girls on the internet was becoming "very prevalent". "Those girls need protecting from themselves and their parents need to know that the courts will take action to do what they can to discourage conduct of this type," he said.
Reported by This is 19 hours ago.