Police arrested a sex offender at Manchester Airport as he returned from Vietnam on a flight. Matthew Garrod, 33, of Church Road in Banks, West Lancashire, had exchanged a series of depraved messages with someone he believed was a 13-year-old girl, but who was in fact an undercover police officer using a fake profile on Snapchat and messaging app Kik.
Garrod tried to arrange to have sex with the supposed teenager at a hotel and suggested that his friends could also abuse her. He was arrested at Manchester Airport on May 9 2024, Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday. Police seized his phone and found chats between the defendant and the officer posing as a 13-year-old girl on the two social media platforms.
Depraved messages and a 'red warning'
Garrod first messaged the decoy on September 13 2021 using the account "Open British Man" with a display name of "Matty Alex", saying he was a 28-year-old man from Leeds, Peter Wilson, prosecuting, told the hearing. The girl's profile stated that she "loved chocolate, pizza and chilling on school holidays", contained a year of birth of 2007, pictures of a piglet and a lemur, and a "red warning" which read: "Please don't send me dirty Kik sexting," The Liverpool Echo reports.
But Garrod went on to "engage her interest in animals" by sending pictures of his pets before "beginning to speak to her in a sexualised manner", telling her that his penis was "considered really big" before sending an explicit image of himself and "asking her what she would like to do with it". While she told him that she was "going to her nan's house, because she was keeping an eye on her" and her dad was "well strict", he went on to "make arrangements to meet in person and have sex with her" at a hotel.
Court hearing and sentence
Garrod also told the girl that he wanted to "get her more experienced" and suggested that she could "practice with his friends sometimes too". His internet history subsequently contained searches asking "how do I permanently deactivate my account on Kik?". Under interview, Garrod claimed that he knew he had been speaking to an adult in his messages and was "acting out of fantasy, because he was involved in a group about daddy daughter and little girls". He has no previous convictions.
Michael O'Brien, defending, told the court: "Whilst it was a guilty plea on the day of trial, that plea is, in my respectful submission, probably the most significant feature of mitigation for this defendant. He was able to reflect upon his admitted behaviour, reflect upon the position he advanced by way of a defence and the position to be advanced at trial."
O'Brien added: "He was in Vietnam. It was during lockdown. Seemingly, Vietnam was not the best place to be during lockdown. References show a different side to this defendant. Importantly, the Probation Service feel able to work with Mr Garrod. They accept that he has shown some insight and remorse into his behaviour."
Garrod admitted attempted sexual communications with a child. He was handed a 12-month imprisonment suspended for two years with 200 hours of unpaid work and a rehabilitation activity requirement of up to 25 days. He was also told to pay court costs of £1,630 within 28 days and given a 10-year sexual harm prevention order. He will be required to sign the sex offenders' register for the next decade.
Sentencing, Recorder Mark Cooper said: "You engaged, in that 10-day period, in communications with a person who actually was a law enforcement operative. You were fully aware that she was 13 years of age. You deliberately ignored a red warning, stating that she did not want to get involved in dirty sexting, so to speak."
Cooper continued: "Despite that, you spoke to her in a sexualised way. You asked for photographs of herself and you even attempted to make arrangements to meet in person in order to have sexual intercourse with her, including references to a hotel being booked. You also referred to getting your friends involved."
He added: "It is quite apparent to me that this was a disgusting, perverted fantasy. When you were interviewed, you said that you thought you were talking to an adult, acting out a fantasy. It is a very sorry state of affairs, as I think you now appreciate."
