Description A paedophile dad sent sexual messages and pictures of himself to what he thought were girls as young as 13 - and asked them to send stuff back. Stephen Burden, 61, later found out that four were undercover police officers - but two others were likely real children. Postal worker Burden, of Bethan Drive in Wadebridge, appeared at Truro Crown Court for sentence having pleaded guilty to 13 total counts including attempted sexual communications with a child, attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity, making indecent photographs of children and possessing extreme pornographic images. The court heard how police decoys were posing as underage girls throughout the duration of time when the offences were committed in 2020. Burden, who asked an officer he thought was 12 to perform sex acts on herself, cited the pandemic as having led him to the internet and extreme websites. In his late 50s at the time, Burden, who has children of his own, was caught communicating with four police officers who he believed were girls as young as 13. It later transpired he had been talking to two others not part of the sting. Who they were is still unknown. "The conversations were described as "highly sexualised", "graphic in nature" and Judge Simon Carr said had there been real children at the end of the conversations, it would have been "extraordinarily damaging" for them. Burden also asked for explicit photos and sent indecent photographs of himself to the 'children'. He also had in his possession category A, B and C indecent images of children. They included extreme pornography. The court heard in mitigation that Burden was previously a man of good character and Judge Carr accepted that the offences had a "devastating affect" on Burden's life and his personal relationships including with his own children. "Your relationships have been irreparably damaged," he said. "I've seen the other side to you, a side of more than 50-odd years of good character." The court also heard that Burden's mother is extremely ill and he is the sole responsible person for her care. "The courts take careful regard for the effects upon others," Judge Carr continued, but said the seriousness of the offences take the sentence outside of any suspended range. Burden was sentenced to four years imprisonment. He is also subject of a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) for ten years and will be a member of the sex offenders register (SOR) for life.