Man caught in Shropshire sting operation thought he was talking to a teenager

Christopher Dingley was in fact engaging with a group which contained people who pretended to be young girls when in reality they were setting up elder men before meeting them in person and filming it for online publication before informing the police.

He appeared at Shrewsbury Crown Court on Thursday for sentence after earlier admitting at Kidderminster Magistrates Court a charge of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child.

Dingley was part of an online dating group called Mingle in January 2022 when, then aged 52 and living in Shrewsbury, he began liaising with what he thought was a 14-year-old girl, almost immediately asking her if he could be her boyfriend.

The court heard he sent her pictures and the messages rapidly became more explicit in nature, with him describing in graphic detail what he would like to do to her and repeatedly saying he wanted a relationship with her, He admitted in the messages he knew she was 14.

But the person replying was a woman employed as an 'online safety officer' and alerted other members of the group when she knew he was walking his dog and they carried out a sting operation, confronting him at his home before tipping off police.

Recorder Julian Taylor KC said given the nature of the messages and the fact he knew he was sending them to what he thought was a 14-year-old, Dingley was lucky to escape an immediate prison sentence.

He said: "These were persistent and detailed conversations and pictures with someone you knew or thought to be a young teenager - you knew you were talking to a 14-year-old and sent he graphic images."

Claire Blakemore, defending Dingley said this was his first offence and he had been living with the matter for well over two years and the humiliation it had cause. He had been remorseful over the incident and had pleaded guilty to the charge at the first opportunity.

Dingley, now aged 55 and of ST Mawgan Close, Castle Vale, was given a 12 months prison sentence suspended for two years, ordered to attend 43 days education  with a sexual offending group, 55 days rehabilitation and 60 hours unpaid work.

He was also given a sexual harm prevention order for ten years.