Grantham man caught by paedophile-hunting group jailed

Steven Slater has been jailed for 16 months

A man captured by a paedophile-hunting group after trying to meet a 14-year-old girl in Grantham has been jailed.

Steven Slater actually met the group's decoy, a 46-year-old woman, and was arrested, Lincoln Crown Court heard.

Slater, 59, admitted five offences that took place between 20 May and 24 July 2022, including attempting to meet a girl aged under 16 after grooming.

Slater, of Canvey Island, Essex, was jailed for 16 months and must register as a sex offender for 10 years.

Slater was in contact with the decoy on social media for two months and asked her to send him explicit photos, the court heard.

The decoy said straight away that she was 14, and Slater tried to delete the messages to "cover his tracks", the court heard.

In total 23 video recordings were made over 14 days.

After Slater tried to meet the girl, the paedophile group made a citizen's arrest and contacted Lincolnshire Police.

Passing sentence, Recorder Graham Huston accepted no real child was involved but said the communications ran to hundreds of pages.

He told Slater: "In this case you attended Grantham railway station to meet a 14-year-old girl who you had been communicating with. In fact it was an adult.

"It is clear you deliberately set out grooming this girl."

Slater was also made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 10 years.