Leslie Gearing

Leslie Gearing, a 78-year-old resident of McKenzie Road in Chatham, Kent, has been sentenced to three years and 11 months in prison for a series of child sexual offences. The case, investigated by the Paedophile Online Investigation Team (POLIT), highlights the dangers of online grooming and the possession of indecent images of children.

Gearing began grooming what he believed to be a 13-year-old girl online in December 2022. Over the following months, he exchanged numerous messages with the 'girl', sending multiple sexually explicit images and requesting that all traces of their conversations be deleted. He instructed that any photos received would be stored in an encrypted folder on his computer's hard drive. Unbeknownst to Gearing, he was communicating with an undercover police officer from Cambridgeshire Police.

In his messages, Gearing complimented the girl's appearance, describing her as a 'very pretty girl', and expressed his desire to take naked photos of her and engage in sexual activity. This culminated in him arranging to meet the 'girl' on 20 February 2023 at Central Park in Peterborough, a journey of more than 100 miles from his home in Chatham.

• Gearing travelled to the meeting point in his car, where police were waiting as part of a pre-planned operation.
• Upon arrest, a search of his vehicle revealed child-size underwear, sex toys, and camera equipment, indicating his intent to carry out sexual activities.
• A subsequent search of his home uncovered over 30,000 indecent images of children on various devices, along with further evidence of sexual communications with children and adults, including attempts to arrange sexual activities with minors.

Gearing appeared at Cambridge Crown Court on 18 September 2023, where he pleaded guilty to several charges. These included three counts of making indecent photographs of a child, three counts of attempted sexual communication with a child, two counts of causing a child aged 13 to 15 to watch or look at an image of sexual activity, two counts of distributing an indecent photograph of a child, one count of possession of an extreme pornographic image, and one count of attempting to meet a child under 16 following grooming. He was found guilty of an additional count of attempting to meet a child under 16 following grooming, which was ordered to lie on file.

Detective Constable Cheryl Lee from the POLIT commented on the case: 'Gearing, through his self-serving depravity, was prepared to travel more than 100 miles with no care for the physical and emotional damage he would have caused by engaging in sexual activity with an underage child. The items he brought with him show just how much of a risk he poses to children. Thankfully he has been exposed and caught and will be held accountable for his actions.' The investigation was led by Cambridgeshire Police, with involvement from Kent Police due to Gearing's residence in the Medway area. This case underscores the vigilance of online investigation teams in protecting vulnerable children from sexual exploitation.