PAUL ROBERTS SENTENCED IN LIVERPOOL FOR OFFENSIVE GROOMING AND SEXUAL OFFENCES
In June 2021, a case involving Liverpool-based sex offender Paul Roberts highlighted disturbing online and offline behaviour.Roberts, aged 37, had previously been convicted of possessing and sharing indecent images of children, which led to a ten-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) issued in October 2011.
Despite this, he violated the order multiple times.
The Liverpool Crown Court was told that Roberts, of Boardsman Lane, St Helens, initially breached the SOPO by having unsupervised contact with two children in 2019.
Prosecutor Charlotte Kenny explained that Roberts regularly met with a boy referred to as Boy A, with his mother’s permission, which was considered lawful.
However, during a safeguarding investigation, Boy A disclosed that Roberts had also taken two other friends to a cinema and park without their parents’ awareness.
Roberts, who was jailed temporarily for 16 months (suspended for two years) on July 17, 2020, then began messaging Boy A on WhatsApp without his mother’s knowledge, shortly after receiving his suspended sentence.
His online activities came under investigation when the National Crime Agency (NCA) traced messages from an account using the profile name “Saint,” later linked to Roberts.
When NCA officers raided Roberts’ home on May 7, 2021, they discovered four mobile phones and two laptops—more than the single phone he had shown an offender manager.
Despite having wiped data with CCleaner software in February 2021, forensic analysis uncovered sexually explicit chat exchanges involving the online persona “Saint,” where Roberts discussed abusing children and referenced a boy he had kissed and cuddled.
There was also mention of 'nice views' of that boy naked, which Ms Kenny indicated might refer to Boy A.
On WhatsApp, Roberts had been grooming Boy A with affectionate language and engaging him in discussions about sexual topics, including proposing a 'prank' on his mother involving sex.
During interviews, Boy A, with his mother present, was described as “gasping in shock” upon hearing the explicit comments.
Boy A revealed he had visited Roberts’ flat multiple times—some sources say at least three, possibly five.
He reported feeling uneasy during these visits but recalled Roberts taking him to the cinema and buying him presents like clothing, computer gear, money, and a bicycle, which He described as making him feel “really happy.” He also recounted that Roberts had cuddled him while playing Xbox, kissed him on the lips upon leaving the flat, and participated in a water fight where their clothes got wet, requiring them to remove their damp clothing.
Ms Kenny added that Roberts once offered to buy the boy condoms.
Further, Roberts admitted to breaching his SOPO on three occasions and violating a suspended sentence imposed the previous July.
In light of this, Recorder Harris imposed a new Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) valid for fifteen years, emphasizing that Roberts' conduct showed an ongoing and dangerous pattern of offending.
The judge sentenced Roberts to a total of three years and four months in prison, including 12 months of the previous suspended sentence, stating that his actions demonstrated a persistent inability or refusal to cease offending behaviors that pose a significant risk to children.
