Kieran Head, aged 29 from High Street, Malltraeth, Bodorgan in Anglesey, was sentenced to four years' imprisonment at Caernarfon Crown Court on 1 December 2023 for a series of child sex offences. He had previously pleaded guilty to multiple charges including three counts of attempting to cause a child to engage in sexual activity, three counts of attempting sexual communication with a child, three counts of making indecent images of a child, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, attempting to cause a child to look at an image of sexual activity, and possession of extreme pornographic imagery.
The offences came to light in mid-2022 when Head engaged with an undercover police officer posing as a 13-year-old boy named 'Ste' on the Grindr platform. Between 22 June and 9 July 2022, Head, who claimed to be 26, sent numerous sexually explicit text messages and photos to the account despite knowing the profile's age. Following this, North Wales Police executed a warrant at Head's home on 21 July 2022, arresting him and seizing his mobile phone and laptop.
Analysis of the devices revealed a substantial collection of indecent images: 75 still and 99 moving Category A (most serious) images, 90 still and 54 moving Category B images, and 94 still and 31 moving Category C images. The children depicted were predominantly females aged between three and 16 years, some appearing distressed. Additionally, three extreme pornographic videos showing a dog engaging in sexual activity with a woman were found, along with search terms indicating a sexual interest in children and a folder entitled 'fun'. Head had also sent images of a female child to a convicted paedophile, stating he would 'love to please her'.
Further investigation uncovered that between March and May 2021, Head had engaged in sexual communication with four different teenage girls, sending messages such as calling one 'absolutely gorgeous' and asking another if she had ever had sex. It also emerged that Head had previously engaged in sexual activity in front of a female child, whose mother described the profound impact in a victim impact statement: 'Now, she is a shell of herself and struggles daily with herself and life in general. Some days she will just cry, and not want to go to school. It breaks my heart to say she started to self-harm as a way of trying to deal with the pain and confusion she feels. He’s taken away the little girl she once was. There isn’t a part of my life that hasn’t been affected by what he has done.'
During sentencing, Judge Nicola Jones addressed Head directly, noting his grooming behaviour and stating: 'Be in no doubt, Mr Head, that these are real children, who are raped, sexually abused and tortured in this way, in order to fulfil the fantasies of people like you.' In addition to the custodial sentence, Head was placed on the sex offenders register indefinitely, subjected to a sexual harm prevention order, and a lifelong restraining order was imposed for the protection of the child he had exposed to his sexual activity. Defence representative Dafydd Roberts highlighted Head's guilty pleas, lack of prior convictions, and his engagement with therapy, supported by letters from his partner and psychotherapist.