Stuart Marchmont was found guilty of 13 online sexual offences after a trial in February before being sentenced last week.

The court was told the 38-year-old incited a girl, who was 12 at the time, from another part of the country to engage in sexual activity via an online platform.

Subsequent investigative enquiries identified Marchmont was from the Avon and Somerset area and we worked with partner agencies – including the South West, South East and Tarian Regional Organised Crime Units (ROCUs) – to bring him to justice.

Marchmont continued to try to contact underage children and believed he was communicating with five different girls, but actually was messaging specialist ROCU officers who target offenders operating online to exploit and abuse children.

Marchmont, formerly of Park Farm Road, received a 10-year sentence at Taunton Crown Court on Wednesday 26 April for one count of inciting a child under 13 to engage in non-penetrative sexual activity and 10 counts of attempting to engage or incite sexual activity with the children who did not actually exist.

He was also sentenced for one count each of causing non-penetrative sexual activity with a 15-year-old and making indecent images of the same child – offences that only came to light upon his arrest in 2021.