Scarborough man spared jail after initiating depraved online chats with underage 'girls'

James Andrew Baxter, who was living in Flixton at the time, befriended the ‘teenagers’ on Facebook, sending one an extremely lewd video and trying to play “boyfriend and girlfriend” with the other, not realising he was in fact chatting with adult decoys from a “paedophile hunter group”, York Crown Court heard.

The decoys, from a vigilante group called Silent Angels, had set up false profiles and email addresses of two fictitious girls and told Baxter they were aged 13 and 14 respectively after accepting his ‘friend’ request on Facebook Messenger.

Prosecutor Kelly Clarke said that Baxter told them he was a slightly older teenager and used a fake profile of a much younger man as part of his vile ruse.

One of the adult decoys, who both used an alias, received a ‘friend’ request from Baxter in October 2021 and told him she was 14 years’ old.

“He said he was 15 and from York,” said Ms Kelly.

“Almost immediately, he sent a video of himself in a towel, saying he was chilling. He then offered to show her his (private parts) and suggested he could send a video without his towel around him.”

The conversations lasted nearly a year and four months, during which time Baxter asked her if she had a boyfriend and told her that “if he was closer, they could be boyfriend and girlfriend and could kiss and cuddle”.

“He then described what a boyfriend could do to her by way of touching her (on intimate areas) and that she would really like it,” added Ms Kelly.

The sordid online chats with the ‘teenager’ finally ended in late February 2023.

At one stage, for a period of several months, Baxter was having sexual chats with both ‘girls’.

The second adult decoy, posing as a 13-year-old girl, was contacted by Baxter in mid-June 2022. On that occasion, he said he was 19 years of age.

“She said she was 13 and he said chat would be fine but that she was young,” added Ms Clarke.

The debauched chats ending after Baxter “invited her to a video chat” which was recorded by the decoy.

Baxter, a married father-of-two who was working as a self-employed plumber and heating engineer at the time, sent the ‘girl’ several videos, on one of which he “shows her his (private parts)”.

Two days later, a man from the “paedophile-hunting” group confronted Baxter on the doorstep of his then home in Flixton.

The vigilante live-streamed the 30-minute confrontation on Facebook.

Police were called out and arrested Baxter. He immediately owned up to what he had done, but claimed he had no sexual interest in children.

Baxter, who moved to Selby following his arrest, was charged with two counts of attempted sexual communication with a child.

He admitted both offences.

Defence barrister Billy Torbett conceded that Baxter’s offences were “quite frankly shocking”.

He said that the former soldier, who is now living in Osgodby, had lost contact with people during the Covid lockdown and had problems in his marriage, so he turned to social media and began having sex chats with adults initially which deviated towards children.

Mr Torbett said Baxter’s behaviour was “totally out of character”, adding: “He quite simply cannot put forward a reasonable excuse (as to) why he has acted in this way.”

Following his arrest, twice-married Baxter had to quit his plumbing-and-engineering job and moved to Selby.

He was now working in a Tesco distribution warehouse.

His wife had begun divorce proceedings and his family had “not wished to speak to him”.

Judge Geoffrey Marson KC branded Baxter’s offences “disgusting and disgraceful” and described as “nonsense” his claim that he had no sexual interest in children.

However, he said that due to Baxter’s timely guilty pleas and the fact there were no actual children involved, he could suspend the inevitable jail sentence.

He had also noted that, barring one previous conviction for public disorder, Baxter was otherwise a man of “good character” and he accepted his “genuine remorse”.

The 10-month jail sentence was suspended for 18 months. Baxter was placed on the sex-offenders’ register for 10 years and made subject to a sexual-harm prevention order to curb his online activities.

He was ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work and engage in a 35-day rehabilitation programme.

He was ordered to pay £150 costs.