June 2010

Man tricked four-year-old Toton girl to pose on webcam for him

A 51-YEAR-OLD man posed as a 16-year-old boy online – and got two girls in Toton to pose partially naked via a webcam, a court heard.

William Porter had conversations with the girls, aged four and 11 years, online and pretended his name was “Lee”.

The four-year-old’s father saw a message on the computer asking the older girl to get the four-year-old to lift her top, Nottingham Crown Court heard.

He went to police and officers found the author of the message lived in Liverpool.

Porter, from Ribble Road, in the Gateacre area, was arrested and admitted he started the conversation with the girls.

“He said it got out of hand and had grown into an addiction,” said Lisa Hardy, prosecuting. “He went into chat rooms just to talk to people.”

Porter, who did not switch on his own webcam, admitted three charges of causing or inciting a child under 13 years to engage in sexual activity.

Two charges involved the 11-year-old and one the four-year-old.

No indecent images were found on his computer and there was no saved footage of the girls.

Judge John Burgess told Porter, of previous good character and who works in a railway ticket booth, that what he did was abhorrent.

“Imagine if it was your four-year-old daughter that some 51-year-old man was ogling via a webcam, or your 11-year-old daughter, who a man had contacted, posing as a 16-year-old and getting her to pose naked in front of the camera.

“But for your admissions, but for your guilty plea, and but for your obvious remorse the sentence would have been two years’ imprisonment.”

Porter received a three-year community order. He was disqualified from working with children and must sign the sex offenders’ register for five years and be subject to a sex offender prevention order for 10 years.

Sarah Phelan, cor in mitigation, said he had shown genuine remorse and he recognised the significant harm that can be caused to young people by this type of conduct.

“He is a confused, inadequate man. He has expressed a desire to commit suicide repeatedly during these proceedings. This man needs treatment.

“He has a supportive partner who he hopes to marry in two years. He has his job.”