A PERVERTED pensioner who thought he was meeting a 14-year-old girl arrived with a knife in his pocket, a court has heard.
Arthur Talbot was caught out by a vigilante paedophile hunter group when he turned up to meet the fictional youngster in Clacton last year.
Chelmsford Crown Court heard the 68-year-old had added the decoy account purporting to be a child as a friend on Facebook.
Toby Roseman, prosecuting, said the pensioner almost instantly began instigating “sexually explicit conversations” from March 31, 2021.
“He was told of her age and he ended up sending X-rated pictures to her,” said the prosecutor.
The court heard Talbot, of St Andrew’s Road, Clacton, asked the decoy to perform sex acts on herself and sent her a video instructing her on how to perform such an act on himself.
He was eventually lured to Thorpe Road, Clacton, on April 15, 2021, where vigilante group Angels for our Children met him and called the police, leading to his arrest.
Mr Roseman continued: “When he was apprehended by the police, the group provided evidence of what they had been doing.
“The police were given the full Facebook conversation he had had with the decoy account.”
Officers searching Talbot, who has three previous convictions for five offences, found a Stanley knife in his possession.
Talbot admitted possession of a knife, attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity, attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and attempting to cause a child to watch sexual activity.
He was due to be sentenced on Monday but Judge Christopher Morgan adjourned proceedings until Friday so the defendant could obtain the services of a solicitor.
Talbot said: “I believed it was a scam and it was a silly thing I had done and I’m sorry, I sincerely apologise.
“I am 68-years-old and have nothing untoward in my sexual history, it’s not in my heart and nature.
“I shouldn’t have got involved, now I’m in a lot of trouble.
“I wouldn’t hurt or cause any harm to a child, I’m incapacitated.”
Talbot was released on unconditional bail until Friday.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article