The court heard that he sent his teenage victim a picture of his private parts and asked her to video chat whilst naked
A Co Tyrone man who was sexually communicating with an underage girl today narrowly avoided immediate custody and was instead handed a three-year probation order.
Matthew Leonard Kilpatrick, 31, of Sycamore Avenue in Sion Mills, had previously pleaded guilty to four counts of sexual communication with a child on dates between February 3 and February 10, 2024.
He further admitted a charge of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity on dates between February 3 and February 9, 2024.
Kilpatrick also pleaded guilty to two charges of possessing indecent images of a child on March 20, 2024.
Dungannon Crown Court, sitting in Belfast, heard that the offences all related to a girl then aged 14 referred to only as ‘T’.
Outlining the facts of the case, Judge Brian Sherrard said the offences came to light on March 20, 2024, when the victim’s mother had confiscated her mobile phone and came across live messaging taking place on Facebook from another computer where the defendant and ‘T’ were communicating.
He said in October 2023 the defendant made contact with ‘T’ online and she told him she was aged 14.
Said the judge: “You contacted her again in February 2024 and you fostered an inappropriate online relationship, much of this was made up of childish exchanges.
“The conversation also turned sexual on February 3, 2024 and it was your assertion that ‘I really want to take you to bed’. You asked if she was a virgin.”
The court heard Kilpatrick sent his teenage victim a picture of his private parts and asked her to video chat whilst naked. The following day the defendant asked for a picture of her bra.
“You said to her that you ‘wished you could join her in the shower and you wanted to see her t**s’. Again, this is just a 14-year-old child,” remarked Judge Sherrard.
The court was told that on February 5, 2024, Kilpatrick messaged the victim to say he wanted to see her bra and wanted to see her naked. He also discussed a sex dream about her.
Judge Sherrard told Kilpatrick: “You knew from the outset that you were much too old for this girl who was under the age for any sexual activity and you expressly stated that as early as the October 2023 communications.
“You also knew, it seems to me, that you might find yourself in legal jeopardy, saying on February 3, 2024, that you ‘hoped the girl didn’t report me on Snapchat’.”
The court heard the girl had also sent Kilpatrick moving and still images which related to the two charges of possessing indecent images of a child.
Judge Sherrard said the impact of Kilpatrick’s offending on the young was “significant”.
In a victim impact statement to the court, she said the offending had placed limitations on her freedom of movement, the impact it had on her education, the impact it had on her relationships with her peers and also her “anxiety around men”.
Said Judge Sherrard: “This is far from being a victimless crime simply because it occurred online. I am mindful that you did not meet the girl and the offending took place over a relatively short period.”
Judge Sherrard said he had a ”raft of papers” before him all dealing with Kilpatrick’s “vulnerabilities”.
A report from a clinical psychologist said the defendant had attended a school for pupils with special needs and had a moderate learning difficulty.
In a further report, a Registered Intermediary described the defendant as a “significantly vulnerable individual”.
In a pre-sentence report compiled by the Probation Board, the author stated that Kilpatrick had “limited insight and accountability for his actions” which added to the risk of this offending happening again and assessed him as a high likelihood of reoffending.
The court heard that Kilpatrick had encouraged the girl to hide her phone, to create a passcode on the phone and not to disclose the code to her mother.
Judge Sherrard said he had concluded that Kilpatrick had “intellectual limitations” which had some impact on his culpability.
“Moreover, those intellectual limitations also impact on the risk of future offending which is something of profound concern to me.
“There would be little opportunity for you to address your established and significant deficits after a relatively short custodial sentence and these deficits must be addressed. These are difficult cases for the court as they cry out for condign punishment but the balance in my mind has to be in favour of public protection which is the most important consideration.
“I consider this matter is best dealt with by way of a three-year probation order which will protect the public and effect your rehabilitation,” added Judge Sherrard.
Kilpatrick was made the subject of a SOPO for a period of five years and he was placed on the sex offenders register for an identical period.
The court granted a destruction order for the indecent images and all devices seized.
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