RONALD DE LEON FROM STAPLEHURST CAUGHT IN SHOCKING ONLINE PREDATION PLOT IN MAIDSTONE

A man from Staplehurst, Ronald De Leon, aged 53, has been found guilty of engaging in a disturbing online grooming scheme involving a minor, which culminated in explicit messaging and plans to meet a supposed 14-year-old boy. The case was heard at Maidstone Crown Court, revealing a troubling pattern of behavior that spanned several days in January 2022.

According to court proceedings, De Leon believed he was communicating with a 14-year-old boy named “Connor” through Grindr and WhatsApp. In reality, the individual he was messaging was an undercover police officer. Over a three-day period, De Leon exchanged numerous messages with “Connor,” who was posing as a teenager. The messages included sexually explicit content, and De Leon repeatedly asked for and sent explicit images of himself. Despite being aware of “Connor”’s age, De Leon continued to engage in sexually charged conversations, showing a blatant disregard for the potential harm.

During police interviews, De Leon admitted that the images he sent, which depicted an adult man in boxer shorts with an erection, were indeed of himself. He also claimed that some images had been edited to enhance their appearance. The communication between “Connor” and “Andre” — De Leon’s alias — began on Grindr on January 10, 2022, before moving to WhatsApp. The messages revealed that De Leon called himself “Andre” and “Connor” confirmed multiple times that he was only 14 years old. Despite this, De Leon’s responses suggested a willingness to continue the conversation, with him stating, “As long as you’re happy with it,” when asked about the age difference.

Prosecutor Trevor Wright highlighted that the topic of “Connor”’s age was addressed early in their exchanges. “Connor” explicitly stated he was 14, while De Leon pretended to be 27. When questioned about whether his age was an issue, De Leon responded nonchalantly. The teenager also confided that he had not yet come out to his family and had no sexual experience, which De Leon dismissed as unimportant and continued to send explicit messages. At one point, “Connor” asked if his inexperience would be a problem, to which De Leon responded in a manner that suggested he was not concerned.

Throughout their conversations, De Leon sent multiple explicit photographs of himself and persistently requested “Connor” to reciprocate with similar images. When police officers, posing as “Connor,” sent a photo of a teenage boy, De Leon responded positively, saying, “I like your face and smile.”

On January 13, 2022, the two had arranged to meet at a McDonald’s branch in Maidstone at 1 pm. However, De Leon called off the meeting approximately 45 minutes before the scheduled time. Later that day, police officers visited his home, where they found boxer shorts matching those in the explicit images he had sent. De Leon confirmed during police interviews that the boxer shorts belonged to him and that the images were of himself.

De Leon had previously admitted to engaging in sexual communications with a child, but he had not yet faced full consequences for his actions. Judge Catherine Moore commented that De Leon had not fully “faced up” to the gravity of his conduct. She emphasized that although he did not meet “Connor” in person, the extensive explicit messaging and the plans to do so were enough to warrant serious concern. The judge noted, “You engaged in hugely explicit conversations, and Connor made plain his sexual experience was limited, but still you did nothing to distance yourself... There was a discussion of meeting up. I recognize that you were the one who called off the meeting, but there were plans made to meet — you had made arrangements with a 14-year-old.”

As a result, De Leon was sentenced to 12 months in prison, but the sentence was suspended for two years. He is also required to complete 25 days of rehabilitation activities and 80 hours of unpaid work. Furthermore, he must notify police of any change of address or identity for the next decade. The phone used during the communication has been seized and is set to be destroyed, marking the end of this disturbing case involving online predation in the Maidstone area.