A 37-YEAR-old man who chatted sexually with what he believed was a 14-year-old girl is finally behind bars.
Matthew Sherwood asked the girl he thought was a teenager whether she would have sex with him and in another message said “age is just a number”.
He admitted attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child between January 31, 2020 and February 8, 2020; attempting to cause or incite a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity between January 31, 2020 and February 8, 2020; and making indecent photos of a child between April 12, 2020 and June 6, 2020.
It was the eighth hearing of the case which has suffered delays including when the defendant’s mother fell in the public gallery.
David Jackson, prosecuting, said Sherwood, of Mandalay Drive, Norton, Worcester, was caught by paedophile hunting group No More Secrets who had used the profile of a fictional 14-year-old girl named Summer.
Mr Jackson read out messages Sherwood had sent that included calling her beautiful, asking whether she would have sex with him, and in one writing “age is just a number”.
Mr Jackson said: “The conversation ended when he said ‘I hope you will enjoy me'.”
The court also heard Sherwood had sent a picture of his genitals to the decoy girl.
Mr Jackson said in the first police interview Sherwood denied being guilty, claiming he had thought it was an adult acting out a fantasy as a 14-year-old girl.
Sarah Brady, defending Sherwood, said he was man of previous good character with no previous convictions and had suffered as his six-year marriage ended after being arrested.
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Mrs Brady said Sherwood accepted he could be jailed but she was appealing for a suspended sentence given he suffered mental health issues and that there was a realistic prospect of rehabilitation.
Judge Martin Jackson said in initial police interviews Sherwood had not brought up mental health issues and there appeared no link with his offending.
The judge said Sherwood may have used mental health as a smokescreen and distraction tactic to avoid admitting guilt, all of which led him to believe there was a lesser chance of successful rehabilitation.
Judge Jackson jailed Sherwood for a total of 19 months and placed him under a 10-year sexual harm prevention order prohibiting contact with children.
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