Man Started Chatting With Two Young Girls Aged Seven and Eight Online, but Their Mother Saw the Disturbing Thing He Asked Them to Do, Quickly Called the Police, and What Officers Later Found Led to a Six-Year Prison Sentence

An online child sex offender has been jailed for six years after using social media to target and exploit two young girls.

Rehan Ali encouraged the children, who were only seven and eight years old, to send him indecent images. He also sent messages encouraging them to carry out sexual acts on each other.

The case came to the attention of the police after the girls’ mother discovered that Ali had been contacting them through Snapchat. She reported the messages to West Yorkshire Police, leading to his arrest in early 2024.

When officers examined Ali’s mobile phones, they found 15 indecent images of children. However, his offending did not stop after his arrest. While he was released under police investigation, he contacted someone online whom he believed was a 13-year-old girl.

The person was actually an adult “decoy” pretending to be a child. Ali contacted the decoy through Facebook and WhatsApp and began having sexual conversations with them. His decision to continue this behaviour while already under investigation was presented to the court as evidence that his actions were deliberate.

Ali, from Falsgrave Avenue in Fagley, Bradford, appeared at Bradford Crown Court and admitted several offences. These included causing or encouraging the two young girls to take part in sexual activity, possessing indecent images of children, attempting to encourage a child to engage in sexual activity and attempting to communicate sexually with a child.

The 24-year-old had no previous criminal convictions before this case. A psychologist’s report said that he had significant learning and thinking difficulties. However, the court heard that he was still able to understand his actions and knew that what he was doing was wrong.

Judge Ahmed Nadim said Ali’s behaviour showed a deliberate and continuing pattern of offending. He explained that the case was a serious example of how social media and online communication platforms can be misused to gain access to children.

The judge said social media can be useful for learning and communication, but it can also allow offenders to contact vulnerable children directly. He told Ali that he had used these platforms to take advantage of the innocence and trust of very young children for his own sexual gratification.

Judge Nadim also said the case showed why parents and guardians must carefully supervise children’s online activities. He recognised that sending Ali to prison would affect his relatives and others close to him, but said this had to be weighed against the seriousness of the crimes.

The court considered the very young ages of the victims, the harm caused to them and the need to protect children from further sexual exploitation.

Ali’s barrister, Allan Armbrister, said his client was 21 years old when the offending began and had no previous convictions. He also said Ali had learning difficulties but accepted that he was able to understand what he was doing. According to the barrister, Ali admitted that his actions were carried out for sexual gratification and understood that he needed to address his behaviour.

As well as receiving a six-year prison sentence, Ali must register with the police as a sex offender for an indefinite period. He will also be placed under a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 15 years. The order is intended to restrict his behaviour and reduce the risk of him targeting children again.

PC William Metcalfe, from Bradford’s Online Child Abuse Investigation Team, welcomed the sentence. He said Ali deliberately used social media to contact underage girls and exploit them for his own sexual purposes.

Police said they remain committed to protecting children from online abuse. They encouraged parents, guardians and young people to report suspicious messages, accounts or online content as soon as possible.