Powys man pleads guilty to online child abuse

POWYS MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO ONLINE CHILD ABUSE

A 58-year-old man from Newtown, Richard Blayney, attempted to engage in explicit online chats with a person pretending to be a teenage girl.

He told the 'girl' that he was 'horny' and inquired about her clothing, including asking what she was wearing after she expressed that she would only show her Spiderman clothing if he barked 'loudly.' The chat was ended when a man taunted him for his behavior, leading to Blayney's arrest.

Police used facial recognition to identify him after a woman saw a video of Blayney asking the decoy what she was wearing.

Blayney pleaded guilty to two counts of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, covering the periods between March 2021 and November 2022, and between March and July 2023.

During court proceedings, Blayney claimed he "could not remember" the girl telling him she was 15 and denied having a sexual interest in children, stating that he made silly comments and engaged in brief conversations.

The court was advised that no sexual images were exchanged and that there was no psychological impact on the victim.

The magistrates' court scheduled the case for sentencing after a probation report, noting the need to consider his remorse, mental health issues, and his role as a carer for his dying father.

The court indicated that the case could be dealt with through a community order, with a sentence to be set on December 17.