Oct 2010

Paedophile jailed for almost five years

A predatory paedophile who used the social networking site Facebook to target his young female victims has been jailed today (8 October) for four years and eight months.

Jonathan Paige, 31, of Shelley Road, Worthing, was identified and arrested following a five month investigation which was sparked by the mother of a 12 year old girl who reported suspicious activity over the internet.
Purporting to be an 11 year old girl, Paige contacted his victim on three occasions and asked her sexually explicit questions about herself.

Painstaking police enquiries led them to Paige, who was arrested, and further work was then carried out on his personal computer. This revealed that he had been in contact with a number of teenaged girls via Facebook and MSN. At the height of his offending, he’d been in touch with over 50 young girls.

Detective Sergeant Simon Dunn, from Adur & Worthing CID, led the enquiry. He said: “Paige is a predatory paedophile who used the internet and other mediums to seek out vulnerable young girls, attempting to groom them into meeting with him.
“In some cases Paige purported to be an 11 year old girl; this activity represents some of the most dangerous behaviour imaginable.
“I would like to thank all the members of the public who helped with this investigation. Without the vigilance of the parents and their children Paige’s offending may not have come to light as quickly as it did. It is so important that living in an age where the internet is one of the most common forms of communication, all users of social networking sites must know the provenance of those they are adding as friends and subsequently talking to.”

Paige was convicted of one count of sexual grooming and seven counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in penetrative sexual activity. He was also convicted of a further five counts of possessing over 450 indecent images of children.