A FORMER council employee accessed social service records to try and bribe and threaten a child into having sex with him.

Aaron Whitman repeatedly offered a 15-year-old money for sex on Facebook.

When the vulnerable teen refused he accessed her file, through his job at Essex County Council, telling her he knew where she lived, terrifying her.

Sex offender Whitman, 26, admitted inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and misconduct in a public office.

He was jailed for 16 months at Ipswich Crown Court on Friday.

Nicola May, prosecuting, told the court Whitman set up a fake account and identity and began contacting the girl.

She said: “He sent her the message ‘Hi, do you want any money at all?’ “She tells him at an early stage this is not appropriate adding ‘ what are you, some sort of paedophile?’.”

After she rejected his increased offers to pay her for sex, going up to £400, she told him she was going to tell her mum.

Whitman then revealed he knew the names of her parents, where she lives and some family history.

Ms May said: “Working for the council he had accessed her social care records.”

The girl informed her parents who subsequently told the police.

Whitman later discovered police were investigating him by again accessing the files illegally, which had been updated with details of the allegation.

Ms May said: “In his position he had no reason whatsoever to access these records.

“He was particularly targeting someone who not only was 15 but who was potentially vulnerable.”

Officers marched into County Hall to arrest business administrator Whitman, from West Bergholt.

The contact took place between June and October 2014 with the arrest on October 29.

It was not the first time Whitman had used a fake identity.

He previously lured a woman into a one-night stand, the court heard.

Natasha Nair, mitigating, said: “I have to accept the gross abuse of trust that has taken place in this case.

“He is finding it difficult to come to terms with the gravity and seriousness of what he has done.”

A tearful Whitman stood in the dock while Judge David Goodin spoke about his despiscable actions before sending him to jail.

Judge Goodin said: “I find it very difficult to imagine anything more chilling.

“The 15-year-old won’t go out on her own or go anywhere because she doesn’t know what the man who abused her looks like.

“Is it him in the corner, is he following me?

“You were 25. She was 15.

“You invited her to engage in sex for money.”

Judge Goodwin said what he did next, sending private information from the files as threats or blackmail, meant jail was inevitable.

He added: “For the 15-year-old to have read that would be little short of terrifying.

“Those sinister threats are the stuff of a horror story.”

Whitman was jailed, given a ten year sexual harm prevention order, placed on the sex offenders’ register and banned from working with children.

A spokesman for Essex County Council said: “Essex County Council places the highest priority on the safeguarding of children and takes breaches of data very seriously.

“Whitman was dismissed in January 2015.

“All our employees are required to comply with strict codes of conduct governing data protection.

“As well as this, thorough pre-employment checks are carried out before recruitment, and any staff who have contact with children or vulnerable adults are required to undergo screening."

Whitman had no previous convictions.