Peterborough paedophile who sent sexual messages to ‘young girl’ jailed after being caught by paedophile hunter group

Nicholas Mucklin, 46, sent hundreds of messages to what he believed to be a 12-year-old girl, but was in fact a decoy account set up by an Online Child Abuse Activist Group (OCAG).

Mucklin arranged to meet the girl on the morning of Sunday, 4 April, outside Peterborough train station but was instead met by the OCAG, who called police.

Social media chat logs, provided to officers by the OCAG, revealed 562 pages of chat stream communications between Mucklin and the girl between 12 February and 2 April.

Mucklin’s messages became increasingly intimate, despite her telling him she was 12 years old.

Over the weeks he sent a picture of his genitals, said he wanted her to be his girlfriend and requested pictures of her in a bra.

He then arranged for her to get on a train and meet him in Peterborough to have sex but that’s when he was confronted by the decoy, having left his home with a bag of chocolates.

Mucklin, of Orchard Mews, Peterborough, admitted attempting to arrange the commission of a child sex offence and attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child.

He was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison at Peterborough Crown Court on Tuesday (8 June). He was also added to the Sex Offenders Register for life and handed an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Detective Sergeant George Neal said: “Mucklin repeatedly spoke completely inappropriately to a person he thought was a young girl and fully expected to meet her on that day.

“Thankfully, it was a fake account but his behaviour was absolutely disgraceful and I am pleased he will now serve time behind bars.

“I would encourage parents and their children to take time to consider their online and messenger app use and review their knowledge and security.”