Paul Hindle

Paul Hindle, a 68-year-old pensioner from Burnley, Lancashire, was sentenced at Blackburn Magistrates' Court after pleading guilty to attempting to communicate with a child under the age of 18 for the purpose of obtaining sexual gratification.

The case came to light when Hindle began online conversations on Facebook with an individual he believed to be a 13-year-old girl named Millie. Unbeknownst to him, the profile was operated by members of the Saving Children's Futures group, a vigilante organisation dedicated to exposing potential paedophiles. During the exchanges, Hindle expressed a desire to meet the 'girl' and arranged a rendezvous at Burnley Barracks railway station, promising to bring beer and pizza to the encounter.

Upon arriving at the station, Hindle was met not by the child he anticipated, but by the group of online vigilantes who detained him until Lancashire Police arrived. The incident occurred almost two years prior to the sentencing, highlighting Hindle's engagement in inappropriate and sexually motivated communications with the decoy.

In court, Zulekha Bhuta, prosecuting, detailed how Hindle had been communicating with the decoy, believing her to be a vulnerable 13-year-old whose family was unwell. Joanne Black, mitigating, explained that Hindle had divorced in 2013 and subsequently struggled with loneliness and depression, leading him to befriend people online. 'He became lonely and depressed and as a result started befriending people on Facebook,' Black stated. 'This was how he came to contact the decoy. She told him that her family were unwell and he felt sorry for her. He fully accepts that he went too far.' Black also noted that Hindle has four children who have disowned him as a result of the charges, and that there had been no further incidents in the intervening two years.

Hindle, residing at Coal Clough Lane in Burnley, received a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for 24 months, along with 10 days of rehabilitation activity requirements. He was further subjected to a five-year sexual harm prevention order and ordered to pay £85 in costs and a £187 victim surcharge. The case was reported by the Lancashire Telegraph, with coverage by Magistrates Court Reporter Andrew Bellard.