Pervert caught in undercover cop sting talking to ‘12-year-old girls’

But Philip White was actually snared in three undercover police stings, engaging in depraved online chats with officers purporting to be underage children.

The 53-year-old was later charged with three counts of attempted sexual communications with a child.

He entered guilty pleas before Warrington Magistrates’ Court, with the case committed for sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court yesterday, Tuesday.

Christopher Hopkins, prosecuting, spoke of how White believed each of the profiles he was communicating with belonged to 12-year-old girls.

But they were in fact controlled by undercover police officers rooting out people ‘plaguing the internet, talking to children for sexual purposes’.

All of the discussions took place in online chatrooms, with the first beginning on November 28 last year.

The undercover officer was pretending to be a 12-year-old child named Alice when they received a message from the defendant, who said ‘hi’.

White asked what she was up to and was told she was at school, before he asked her what she was like and if her breasts were ‘big or small’.

The conversations continued, despite the defendant being told by the ‘girl’ that she was only 12, and included chats about potentially meeting up for sexual activity and her sending him photos.

White told the girl that he wanted to see her ‘gorgeous’ genitalia, sent a photo of himself and asked for one in return in her knickers, adding that he was ‘horny’.

Discussions with the second officer, again purporting to be a 12-year-old child, this time named Olivia, began on February 2 this year.

White sent her three photos of his erect penis, and when she told him she was aged 12, the court heard he replied: “Fine by me.”

Another chat in early 2024 was with an undercover officer under the guise of 12-year-old Lara, about whom the defendant again asked if her breasts were ‘big or small’, and if he could have a photo of her genitalia.

The hearing was at Liverpool Crown Court

White was arrested by police and interviewed, where he made ‘some admissions’.

Mitigating on behalf of her client, Keira Shaw asked for full credit for his guilty pleas, entered at the first opportunity, and highlighted a character reference from his daughter and a letter from himself to the court.

“He is extremely ashamed of himself, and he described to me and his pre-sentence report author the gross betrayal of trust on his part, not only to himself, but to his family and the community,” she said.

It was said that the father-of-two, who has been married to his wife for 31 years, will ‘never forgive himself for what he has put them through’.

Ms Shaw commented that White, a plumbing and heating engineer, has taken positive steps to address his offending of his own accord, including online support networks, and he now has a basic mobile phone with no internet capability.

It was also said that he has no previous convictions and is a ‘hard-working, contributing member of the community’, with Ms Shaw urging the court to suspend any period of imprisonment.

Before sentencing, judge David Swinnerton said: “On each occasion, you were getting some sort of sexual pleasure from ‘talking dirty’ to who you thought to be 12-year-old girls.

“Although there were no real children, the reason the court takes such offences so seriously is a desire to protect girls from people like you.

“The main question is whether or not I suspend the sentence.

“In your case, given all that has been said in mitigation, I take the view that there is a reasonable prospect of rehabilitation in your case.

“If you are to continue the work you are doing, there is a reasonable prospect of you never offending again, so I am going to suspend the sentence.”

White, of Widdale Close in Whittle Hall, was sentenced to 12 months in prison, but this was suspended for 18 months.

He must also complete a 12-month mental health requirement and 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days.

In addition, the court imposed a sexual harm prevention order and told him he must sign the sex offender register, both for a period of 10 years.