1 day Ago By [email protected] (Mark Naylor)
An online sexual predator who wrongly thought that he was chatting on the internet with a real teenage boy later joked that any intimate activity with the lad would be well worth it – even if he went to prison. Stephen Verrill did not realise that he was exchanging messages with a decoy boy who had been specifically created to trap online perverts like him. He cynically made the comment “Worth a year in jail” without realising that he would, in reality, be locked up for even longer than that just a few months later.
During one exchange of messages with the fake boy, Verrill even made the comment that he used to be a police officer, Hull Crown Court heard. Verrill, 45, of Quay Road, Bridlington , admitted attempting to engage in sexual activity with a child, attempting to cause or incite a child to engage in sexual activity and attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming. David Godfrey, prosecuting, said that there were seven days of contact between Verrill and a decoy boy, who was supposedly aged 14 and from Nottingham, from May 5.
Verrill asked on Facebook about the fake boy’s sexual experience and told him: “You are damned cute.” He said: “I can still go to prison” but he added: “OK. F*** it.
Jail time is worth it.” He asked if the non-existent boy wanted to see his intimate areas but he said that he was not asking the teenager to send him anything, although if he did, it was his choice. Verrill later made more suggestions about the sending of intimate pictures and he “implored” the fake boy to keep their messages secret because of his age.
Verrill sent the decoy lad an explicit picture of himself. The conversations moved to WhatsApp and Verrill asked for intimate pictures of the boy. He suggested them meeting in person and said that he would like to hug and kiss the fake boy.
He told the boy that “he was a police officer before”, said Mr Godfrey. Verrill continued with highly sexualised comments but he added that everything was the boy’s choice. He told the decoy boy: “If you want to kiss, that’s up to you.
I’m not putting pressure on you.” The boy told Verrill that he was going to catch a train to Bridlington and he gave an arrival time. He told the boy: “Shower before you set off” – a reference to apparent planned sexual activity.
Keep up to date with all the latest crime and court news from Hull with our free newsletter Information was posted to a paedophile hunters group and, on May 12, Verrill was detained and arrested after going to the railway station. His phone was searched and it was discovered that Verrill had exchanged messages with an adult woman about the boy, with laughing emojis. Verrill said: “He looks older but I am going to prison.
He is fit though. Worth a year in jail.” During police interview, Verrill claimed that he believed that the boy was a fake account and that he was only speaking to him to catch him out.
He claimed that he only went to the railway station to catch him out. “He denied having a sexual interest in children,” said Mr Godfrey. Verrill had no previous convictions.
John Dunning, mitigating, said that Verrill had been in custody on remand since May 14. He had been assessed that there was a strong possibility of him not behaving in this way in the future. ‘There is no other history of harmful behaviours,” said Mr Dunning.
There was some “muddled and unclear thinking” in Verrill. “That can and should be addressed by work with the probation service,” said Mr Dunning. “His risk is manageable in the community.
He has lost his job. He has lost respect in the community. He has behaved in a way that he now bitterly, bitterly regrets.
He had a responsible job managing care centres.” There were references for him. Verrill was jailed for three years.
He was given an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and he must register as a sex offender for life. Get all the latest crime and court news in Hull straight to your mobile via WhatsApp by clicking here . If you don’t like our community, you can leave any time.
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