Convicted sex offender jailed after sharing explicit messages with decoy account he thought was a 13-year-old girl
A convicted sex offender in Peterborough who shared explicit messages with a decoy account he thought was a 13-year-old girl has been jailed.
Cambridgeshire police say that Daniel Coleman (40) contacted the account in May 2025, not knowing it was a decoy run by an online child abuse activist group.
The police spokesperson said: “Despite the “child” telling him she was only 13 years old numerous times during their communication, he proceeded to strike up conversations of a sexual nature before arranging to meet her.
"Despite not using his real name, officers traced the IP address of the profile back to Coleman and later arrested him.”
Police say that Coleman, of Bishops Road, Peterborough, pleaded guilty to attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, breach of a sexual harm prevention order, inciting a girl aged 13-15 to engage in sexual activity, and failing to comply with Sex Offenders’ Register requirements.
He was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison at Cambridge Crown Court on July 31.
Afterwards, PC Alex Neill, who investigated, said: “Coleman is clearly a risk to children.
"Protecting young people from harm is one of our top priorities and we will do all we can to bring offenders to justice."