This is Bristol --A MIDDLE-AGED man who groomed a 14-year-old girl for sex, but claimed he was pretending to be her boyfriend so she could impress her friends on Facebook, has been jailed for 15 months.
Darren Kenna-Jones had his Facebook account shut down when the social network site detected what it considered was inappropriate contact with the girl.
Initially the youngster told police the he had pretended to be her 16-year-old boyfriend, Bristol Crown Court heard.
In a second interview she told police she had lied, saying Kenna-Jones asked her to tell the story and she did so because she was scared.
Kenna-Jones, 42, of Daventry Road, Knowle, denied arranging to meet a child following sexual grooming.
He has also pleaded not guilty to having sexual activity with a child and doing an act tending or intended to pervert the course of justice.
A jury at Bristol Crown Court convicted him of grooming, cleared him of sexual activity and failed to reach a verdict on the alleged perversion of justice – which was recorded as not guilty by a judge.
Judge Richard Bromilow told him sexual language Kenna-Jones used in messages to the girl were described by her as "vile".
He told Kenna-Jones: "They were disgusting in my view. You did abuse your position because she had become trusting of you.
"I'm quite satisfied that but for the intervention of Facebook and the police you would have met with her for sexual activity.
"Your behaviour had been wholly shameful."
Kenna-Jones was ordered to sign as a sex offender for ten years and was made the subject of a ten year sexual offences prevention order banning him from unsupervised contact with youngsters.
Peter Coombe, opening the case for the prosecution, said: "The prosecution are saying that this defendant was seeking to indulge in sexual activity with an under-age girl and he had been grooming her for that purpose."
Mr Coombe said an investigation was prompted when Facebook contacted police and alerted them to Kenna-Jones' activities on the site in March 2012.
Mr Coombe said: "Facebook drew the police's attention to a conversation between the defendant and (the girl) on March 14.
"It made it quite plain to meet on March 16, and it was quite plain that the defendant was saying that was for sexual purposes."
Mr Coombe read the jury a graphic message sent by the defendant, to which the child replied: "Ok then, sexy. I'm just saying to my mum I'm going out with a friend."
The court heard police visited the defendant's home and spoke to his wife, who contacted her husband.
Mr Coombe said that, after that, the defendant and the girl communicated with each other by text before he was arrested.
The accused told police the girl asked him to pretend to be her boyfriend so she was not left out.
He said it was "just a laugh and got out of hand" and he never had sexual intentions towards her at all.
The jury heard police spoke to the girl and she confirmed it was a joke which she didn't know who started.
She confirmed messages from him became explicit and she was shocked.
The court was read messages the pair exchanged which Mr Coombe described as "overtly sexual discussion".
When his Facebook account was closed he continued to communicate with her with a flurry of texts, the court heard.
In a second interview the girl said she was lying and the man had told her what to say.
She also said they had met, the defendant had touched her bottom and she "whacked his arm" and he laughed.
The accused was re-interviewed and said the messages were just "banter".
Speaking via video link, the girl told the jury: "He wants to act innocent and he wasn't. He knows he's in the wrong. I'm telling the truth, what have I got to lie for?" Reported by This is 6 hours ago.