Dioni Haki

A man from Sheffield has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for a series of sex offences involving attempts to groom what he believed to be a 13-year-old girl online. Dioni Haki, 32, was caught out by self-described 'paedophile hunters' who set up a decoy account to expose potential predators on the internet.

The case came to light after Haki contacted an online profile posing as a 13-year-old girl named Courtney in February 2018. The account was operated by the group 'Hunters 25/8', which the judge described as an organisation that 'seems to police the unpoliceable internet'. According to prosecutor Camille Morland, Haki engaged in numerous conversations about sex with the decoy between February 4 and March 7, 2018. During this period, he sent three explicit videos of himself performing a solo sex act to the account.

Haki also attempted to persuade the 'girl' to engage in sexual activity and encouraged her to send explicit pictures of herself. The court heard that Haki, who had arrived in the UK as an illegal immigrant from Albania three years prior, pleaded guilty to four sex offences at an earlier hearing. These included attempting to cause a child under the age of 16 to engage in sexual activity and attempting to cause a child under the age of 16 to watch a sex act.

• Haki's actions began with contacting the decoy profile.
• He sent explicit videos and sought sexual engagement from the supposed minor.
• The case was reported to authorities by the paedophile hunters.

At Sheffield Crown Court on May 25, 2018, Judge Roger Thomas QC imposed the 18-month custodial sentence. In addition, Haki was placed on the sex offenders' register for 10 years and informed that he would face deportation upon his release from prison. Defending barrister Francis Edusei noted that this was Haki's first brush with the law, describing his life in the UK as lonely and suggesting an element of fantasy and disengagement in his actions.

The judge remarked on the role of groups like Hunters 25/8, stating: 'I know of these organisations that seem to have cropped up, not public bodies, who seem, in some ways to police the unpoliceable internet.' This case highlights the growing involvement of vigilante groups in tackling online child sex offences, though their methods remain controversial.