A Bognor man has gone to prison for attempting to meet, what he thought were, two young girls for sex after grooming them online.
Martin Garrigan, 32, of Barton Road, Bognor, thought he would be meeting two teenage girls, with whom he had been speaking online.
But he'd actually been speaking to two adults posing as girls, and was arrested by Sussex Police officers in Hotham Park in September 2022.
Garrigan was given a four-year sentence having previously pleaded guilty to attempted sexual communication with children, when he appeared at Lewes Crown Court on 30 June.
He will also be a registered sex offender for life, and was given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) to last indefinitely, severely restricting his access to children and to digital communications devices.
Detective Constable Jordan Holmes of Sussex Police said:
"Garrigan was blatantly seeking to meet young girls for sex and may well have persisted in this and other ways but fortunately we received information from members of the public and his activities were rapidly ended."
For information about child sexual exploitation and how it can be spotted and reported, see the Sussex Police website.
Event Bookings Go Live For Worthing Festival ‘24
Man Charged After Throwing Brick Through Brighton Restaurant Window
Peacehaven Man Disqualified Over High-Speed A27 Pursuit Near Brighton
Appeal After PCSO Assaulted In Uckfield
Man Charged With Rape Of Teenage Girl In Newhaven
Overnight Closures For A22 Forest Row Road Improvements
Brighton Defence Manufacturer's Controversial Planning Application Likely To Be Heard
Over £2.4m Approved For Worthing School Support Centre
Section Of M25 To Close Again Tonight - As Drivers Warned Not To Get Complacent
Plans For 800 New Horsham Homes Refused