A paedophile from Penarth has been jailed for trying to arrange sex with a 12 year-old girl.
One South Wales Police detective described David Parton as “one of the most dangerous offenders” he’s ever come across.
The 58 year-old was arrested by organised crime officers in October following explicit online conversations with a police decoy.
Swansea Crown Court heard the Tarian unit had identified Parton as targeting children in South Wales and engaging a child to commit sex acts.
He began grooming the decoy - who he believed to be a young girl - on 26th September 2024 and incited them to engage in penetrative sexual activity.
The court had the communication developed with Parton intent on using spanking implements on the child while also discussing the use of condoms.
But on 11th October, when Parton travelled to meet the girl at a location, he was met by police officers who immediately arrested him. He was charged and remanded to court the same day.
Officers found lubricant, condoms and Viagra in his vehicle, along with a whip, hairbrush and belt which Parton had intended to use on the child.
In court, he pleaded guilty to all charges including attempting to arrange or facilitate the commission of a child sex offence, attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and breaching a sexual harm prevention order.
Parton was jailed for six years and will serve a further four years on licence upon his release. He was also placed under a sexual harm prevention order and must register as a sex offender for life.
Following sentencing, Detective Constable Issac Gott from the Tarian unit said: “As a result of the complex and thorough investigation by detectives from Tarian, Parton had little option but to enter his guilty plea to the charges placed before him.”
“David Parton is one of the most dangerous offenders I have come across. He is a man who poses an extreme risk to children.”
He added: “He is now behind bars where he can no longer pose a risk to children.”
”I hope that this serves as a warning to anyone who is intent on abusing children. We will use every available resource to find you and ensure you have your day in court.“
“Tackling online child sexual exploitation is a national priority for law enforcement and we are pursuing more offenders and safeguarding more children than ever before.”
Craig Harding, a senior prosecutor with the CPS in Wales, added: "David Parton’s online messages were sexually explicit despite the belief he was messaging a child."
"He made arrangements to meet the decoy thinking the girl was missing school to meet him. Fortunately, there were no children at risk in this instance but that is not always the case."
"These circumstances serve as a reminder of the dangers children can face when using social media. The CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) will prosecute all sexual offenders when the legal test to do so is met."
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