AN AUSTRALIAN MAN has become the first person convicted for grooming and performing sex acts in front of what he believed to be a nine-year-old girl.
His trial stemmed from a worldwide sting operation in which Dutch children’s charity Terre des Hommes created a fake Filipina girl named “Sweetie.”
The operation led to 1,000 people being identified as paedophiles, and the group handed over their details to Interpol, including three Irish men.
Here’s a video explaining the Terre des Hommes project, which some readers might find distressing:
The BBC reports that Scott Robert Hansen, already a registered sex offender, pleaded guilty to three charges at Brisbane District Court.
He admitted sending numerous sexually explicit messages to “Sweetie”, as well as performing a sex act on webcam during a chat with what were in fact, adult staff of Terre des Hommes.
Hansen had previous convictions, including an 18-month sentence in 2010 for exposing himself to children in Canungra, Queensland, and possessing 20,000 explicit photos and videos of children.
He was given a two-year sentence this week, but is not likely to serve any jail time, instead being subject to a correction order and forced to undergo sex offender treatment, the BBC reports.
The judge in the case rejected the defence that “Sweetie” was not actually a real person.
“If you believe that’s a nine-year-old girl, then that’s the law, that’s good enough.”
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