Jamie Bartlett who believed he was arranging to have sex with seven-year-old girl was caught by undercover officer.
Bartlett, 46 from Aberdare, believed he was talking to a man with access to a made-up seven-year-old girl but was actually speaking to an officer from the Police Online Investigation Team (POLIT).
During the communication he said, “”I really hope it’s not a fantasy mate, I’m really up for it” and he also told the undercover officer that he had previously had sexual activity with an eight-year-old girl.
When told that fictitious girl was “seven-years-old”, he responded “Mate, that’s perfect to be honest, tell me more about her”.
Officers subsequently attended his workplace where he was arrested, and two of his phones were seized. Examination of the phones identified indecent images of children and extreme pornography.
During his police interview he stated that he believed the conversation to be ‘a fantasy’, a defence he maintained during trial.
He was found guilty of attempting to arrange or facilitate sexual activity with a child having already pleaded guilty to three offences of possessing indecent images of children and an offence of possessing extreme pornography.
He has been sentenced to a total of three years and three months imprisonment and was made subject to sex offender notification requirements indefinitely.
Detective Sergeant Chris Cole said,“More and more of our lives, and that of our children, is spent online – whether that be on a computer, a smart phone or a tablet. Sadly, this also means there are more opportunities for sexual predators to exploit. The South Wales Police Online Investigation Team work hard to ensure that the likes of Jamie Bartlett are swiftly identified and not able to pose a threat to children.”
