WILLIAM WILSON AND SHOCKING SEX OFFENDING IN WEST LOTHIAN
A man named William Wilson, aged 51, from Kirknewton in West Lothian, has been involved in a disturbing series of online predatory behaviors targeting a decoy he believed to be a 14-year-old girl.Wilson’s actions, which were carried out under the self-chosen alias “Amapedo,” involved him engaging with a fake profile set up by a paedophile hunting group.
This profile, featuring an image of a young girl estimated to be between 12 and 14 years old, was used to lure him into making explicit exchanges and requesting inappropriate images.
The court heard that around March 20, 2022, William Wilson’s online account was created using this fake profile on a site called Meet24.
It became apparent that the profile was of someone under the age of 18, which was confirmed after investigators provided evidence.
Within hours of establishing contact, Wilson initiated conversation by calling himself ‘Amapedo’ and expressing interest with a message saying, “I like you.” This was promptly followed by a string of explicit messages that revealed his intentions.
The decoy, posing as a girl named Sophie, responded to Wilson, claiming she was 14 and from Birmingham.
Wilson, still under his alias, then sent a message expressing a preference for young girls and asked if she had any pictures of herself in a school uniform, specifically with a skirt.
When she indicated she did not think she had any such photos, Wilson’s inquiry turned toward more disturbing territory, asking if she had a younger sister and whether she would be willing to provide a picture of her.
In an attempt to continue the conversation off the platform, Wilson requested that they switch to WhatsApp, providing a phone number that the decoy added.
However, instead of continuing contact through WhatsApp, Wilson made a phone call to the decoy, pretending to be someone else, and then sent her a series of text messages.
Two days later, contact was re-established via the profile “Sophie” on Meet24, now using the username “Grampa70,” which was also confirmed to be linked to Wilson.
This “Grampa70” account sent her further explicit messages, escalating the conversation to include highly inappropriate requests asking her to send images of her seven-year-old sister, citing a purported “big thing for young girls.” The decoy, suspicious but still engaged, tried to verify the identity of “Grampa70” by requesting the last four digits of his phone number, which he provided, reaffirming his sexual interest in minors.
Wilson’s disturbing conversations and demands were eventually reported to the West Lothian Wolfpack paedophile hunting group.
The group gathered evidence including screenshots of the chat logs, images sent, and Wilson’s home address.
On the evening of the same day, approximately at 7:30 pm, three members of the group—comprising one woman and two men—went directly to Wilson’s residence and knocked on his door.
One of the members streamed live footage of his reaction on Facebook after giving notice of their presence and explaining that they were investigating his online activities.
When confronted, Wilson, sitting at his home in West Lothian, responded with a simple “Aye, aye” and even invited the group inside.
Police were called to the scene, and officers collected all digital evidence, including screenshots of the conversations and images exchanged.
They also reviewed the live-stream recording, which captured Wilson admitting to communicating inappropriately with a person he believed to be a child of around 14 years old.
Wilson was taken into custody and initially cautioned.
During questioning, he expressed remorse, stating, “I’m sorry, I don’t know what else to say,” before finally admitting, “Yes, I done it.
I put my hands in the air.” His conduct led to formal charges, and he appeared in Livingston Sheriff Court where he pleaded guilty to attempting to communicate indecently with a person he believed to be underage.
Prosecutor Christine Brownlie outlined the details, emphasizing Wilson’s requests and attempts to induce a minor into sexual activity, including soliciting images of a young girl and her younger sister, for sexual gratification or to cause humiliation, distress, or alarm.
Sheriff Susan Craig ordered a background report before sentencing, warned Wilson that he could face a custodial sentence, and confirmed he would be placed on the sex offenders’ register.
Wilson was informed that he would be notified of the exact duration of his notification requirements when he returned to court for sentencing scheduled on September 14.
The case highlights the ongoing efforts of law enforcement and community groups to combat online child exploitation and locate offenders in West Lothian.
