Iain Moody

A Tayside businessman, Iain Moody, has been spared jail after admitting to attempting to communicate indecently with a child through explicit sex chats on social media. The 42-year-old from Perthshire believed he was conversing with a 13-year-old schoolgirl but was unaware that the account was operated by an undercover police officer.

The incident occurred between 19 and 22 June 2023, when Moody, then residing in Rattray, Blairgowrie, initiated contact via the Kik platform. According to court proceedings at Perth Sheriff Court, Moody's messages quickly escalated from casual greetings to highly explicit content. Despite the decoy stating her age as 13 from Birmingham, Moody continued, apologising initially but persisting with graphic requests.

• He urged the 'girl' to strip slowly while dancing and to skip school classes.
• Moody asked if she wanted 'full sex' and, when she expressed fear of pregnancy, suggested she could 'get the pill' and that it was better without a condom.
• He described engaging in a sex act himself and detailed what he would do to the youngster, ignoring expressions of reluctance.

Sheriff Jennifer Bain KC described the text exchanges as 'truly appalling' during sentencing. She noted that Moody was undeterred by the disclosed age and that his communications would have caused 'considerable anxiety and upset' and 'lasting impact' had they been with a real child. Moody, who has a prior sexual offence conviction from 2004, was assessed as a medium risk of reoffending but showed no evidence of deviant sexual interests. He expressed disgust and shame, attributing his actions to relationship troubles and business debts following job loss during Covid.

Defence solicitor Jamie Baxter argued that Moody expected to speak with an adult, having received the contact from a flirting site, and highlighted his hardworking life and genuine remorse. Moody has since lost his job and relationship due to the incident and is taking steps to avoid repetition, including considering a move to England.

Moody, now residing in Pitcairlie near Newburgh, was placed on supervision, ordered to complete 180 hours of unpaid work, and must remain on the sex offenders register for two years. The case was reported by The Courier on 27 September 2024.