Locations
Sharp Street, Wyke, Hull, HU5
Description
A perverted sex offender who thought that he was chatting on Facebook to two young girls aged 13 and 14 was trapped by a "self-styled paedophile hunter" who met up with police and showed them where the online predator lived.
Luke Lindley later brazenly tried to pretend that his Facebook account has been hacked and he turned violent when he was confronted and arrested by the police, Hull Crown Court heard.
Lindley, 28, of Sharp Street, Wyke, Hull, admitted two offences of attempting to arrange or facilitate the commission of a child sex offence between November 20 and 29, 2020 as well as two offences of assaulting a police officer as an emergency worker and another of possessing cannabis on December 1, 2020.
Julia Baggs, prosecuting, said that police went to Cottingham Road, Hull, at 8.20pm to meet with a man who had travelled from the Rotherham area. He had been working as a "self-styled paedophile hunter" and had set up decoy girls, supposedly aged 13 and 14, online. He directed the police to Lindley's home.
Lindley had chatted to the fake girls on Facebook Messenger and had said that he wanted to have sex with one of them. "He had been sending videos of himself committing sex acts," said Miss Baggs.
Lindley told police: "It wasn't me. My Facebook has been hacked." He was arrested but pushed a police officer away and resisted. Other police helped by taking hold of Lindley. One of them ended up on the floor, with Lindley on top of him. The officer's hand was bleeding.
While Lindley was in custody, three hand-rolled cannabis cigarettes were found on him. He later admitted during police interview that he believed that both fake girls were children.
He had convictions for 29 previous offences between 2012 and 2020, including two of arson, eight for violence and others for public disorder, criminal damage and possessing cannabis.
He had a conviction for a serious assault on his father, causing a fractured skull and two of assaulting police. At the time of the latest offences, Lindley was subject to a suspended prison sentence.
Connor Stuart, mitigating, said that Lindley did not now own a mobile phone. He had been on bail until the day of the court case and had been receiving help.
Sentence was adjourned for reports until February 13 and Lindley was remanded in custody because of the "high risk of offending" that he posed and the fact that the offences were committed while a suspended sentence was in force. A prison sentence was likely to be imposed at the next hearing for the "very serious" offences, the court heard.