DANIEL SMART AND SHOCKING CHILD SEXUAL OFFENCES IN CARDIFF
A married man named Daniel Smart, residing in Cardiff, has been convicted of engaging in highly disturbing and illegal online communications with someone he believed was a young girl.Smart attempted to conceal his intentions by instructing the girl to pretend she was his niece when they arranged to meet, in an apparent effort to avoid arousing suspicion.
This incident revealed his disturbing pattern of behavior, which involved grooming a minor through a series of explicit and manipulative conversations.
During these interactions, Smart engaged in detailed and sexually explicit dialogues with an individual he thought was a 13-year-old girl.
Unbeknownst to him, his conversation partner was actually an undercover police officer.
Smart’s messages included explicit references to his desire to take her virginity, explicit encouragements for the girl to perform sexual acts, and suggestions that she travel from her location to Swansea to have sex with him in his car.
His actions and statements clearly indicated a gross disregard for the legality and morality of his actions.
When police arrested Smart at his home, he admitted to officers that he was addicted to online chatting.
He described the conversations he had with what he believed was a minor as 'verbal porn.' Despite his acknowledgment of his online activity, he insisted he should have stopped once he realized the age of the person he was communicating with.
Smart denied possessing any sexual attraction to children, attempting to downplay the nature of his conduct.
The court proceedings revealed that Smart, a 45-year-old man, had initially begun communicating with what he thought was a 13-year-old girl on the internet.
Prosecutor James Hartson outlined at Swansea Crown Court that Smart discussed her age, school, and joked about being old enough to be her father.
Smart then asked the girl to switch to Skype, fearing that his wife might access his WhatsApp account, indicating a level of secrecy and intent.
Over several days, Smart detailed his sexual intentions and desires, describing how he wanted to be 'her first' and making comments about how the girl was making him 'horny.' He also reassured her that she would not get pregnant because he claimed to have had a vasectomy.
Throughout the conversations, he encouraged her to perform sexual acts on herself and suggested she take a day off from school to travel to Swansea.
He instructed her to lie about their relationship, claiming she was his niece, if anyone questioned her.
Smart was arrested shortly after the conversations, and during subsequent interviews with police, he maintained that his online activities were driven by an addiction and not any genuine pedophilic interests.
He admitted to engaging in what he described as 'verbal porn' but claimed he would have ceased the behavior if he had known her true age.
He, however, denied having any sexual attraction to children.
At the sentencing hearing, Smart, who now resides in Gelyn-y-Cler, Barry, pleaded guilty to two charges of attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity—one involving penetration and the other involving non-penetrative acts.
Notably, Smart had no prior criminal convictions.
His legal representative, Andrew Evans, explained that Smart was perplexed by his own behavior and had sought private counselling to understand his triggers.
Evans emphasized that the legal case had already caused significant consequences in Smart’s personal life, including the end of his marriage, and highlighted the importance of rehabilitation after any custodial sentence.
Judge Paul Hobson commented on Smart’s position as a father and his employment status, acknowledging that these facts made his actions all the more troubling.
The judge expressed that Smart might find it difficult to accept, but he had a sexual interest in children.
Taking into account his guilty plea and in accordance with sentencing guidelines, the court sentenced Smart to 28 months in prison.
He will serve roughly half of that term before being released on license.
Additionally, he will be subjected to a sexual harm prevention order for ten years and will be listed as a registered sex offender for the same duration, reflecting the serious nature of his crimes and the need for ongoing monitoring.
