A paedophile with a persistent interest in children’s pink underwear has been jailed for 18 months for wanting to have sex with a 14-year-old schoolgirl.

Daniel Turner was snared by a member of Protecting Children Online UK who set up an account on an over 18s internet site in the name of Paige, Bradford Crown Court heard today.

Prosecutor Anthony Moore said Turner, 38, contacted ‘Paige’ in October 2017 and went on to send her more than 300 messages, as well as photos of his penis and videos of him masturbating. A meeting in West Yorkshire was suggested, the court heard.

The decoy had told him she was a 14-year-old schoolgirl as soon as he got in touch. 

The court heard that Turner, of Gainsborough Avenue, Tilbury, Essex, told Paige he would be her boyfriend.

When they chatted on WhatsApp, he asked if she wore a skirt and tights to school. He wanted to know the colour of her knickers and bra and made reference to pink underwear. He sent a picture of his penis and said he wanted to have sex with her.

He tried to arrange meetings between them in London and Leeds before ceasing the contact the following month.

Mr Moore said Turner was arrested in 2020, saying he was sorry.

His phone was seized and 45 indecent images of children at Category C were found on it of girls aged ten to 13.

It also disclosed conversations between Turner and a ‘girl aged 12 living in Portugal.’ He asked for sexualised images of her in a skirt and pink knickers.

Later in 2020, there was a conversation with someone saying she was ‘Glasgow mum.’ Photos were sent to him of what she said was a girl aged nine. He said ‘very cute, what else have you got?’ “Has she got any pink knickers?” he asked.

Turner pleaded guilty to two offences of attempting to communicate with a child for sexual purposes; attempting to cause a child to watch a sexual act; and making indecent images.

His barrister, Lydia Pearce, said he had no previous convictions.

He had a stable home with his mother and worked nightshifts at Asda.

He was well aware that an immediate sentence of imprisonment was at the forefront of the court’s mind.

Turner pleaded with the court to spare him an immediate jail sentence. They were attempts only with decoys and it was ‘an extreme wakeup call for him.’ Judge Jonathan Rose said Turner was in communication with adults acting as decoys to ‘wheedle out men like you.’ He had sought to have sexual intercourse with young girls and it was deeply disturbing that he had offended in 2017 and then again in 2020.

He had sent what he believed was a girl aged 14 photos and videos of his penis and him masturbating. In 2020, he had a continuing sexual interest in children, one as young as nine. His behaviour was deplorable and he had a repeated interest in pink knickers.

Judge Rose made a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for ten years and Turner will register on the sex offender register, also for ten years.