A pensioner pervert wanted a teenage girl to use a carrot in a sex act, a court heard. Convicted paedophile Philip Trevena was caught messaging what he thought was a 14-year-old girl when he was prohibited from doing so.
A sentencing hearing at Truro Crown Court today (Friday, January 17) heard how the 75-year-old from Constantine engaged in sexualised conversations with a girl online, despite the girl being 14, over a period of six days in October 2021.
Over 20 messages, Trevena asked the girl if she liked sex and asked her to send him naked pictures of herself and to perform sexual acts for him such as masturbating and using the carrot to prepare for sex with him.
Towards the end of the six-day exchange, Trevena asked to meet up with the girl. It was then the person at the other end turned out to be an adult and a paedophile hunter who sent the conversation and Trevena's address to Devon and Cornwall Police.
The pensioner is already on the sex offenders' register for life after serving time in jail for having sexual activity with a child in the last two decades.
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His defence barrister, Katie Churcher, told the court Trevena had pleaded guilty to two charges of attempting to cause / incite a girl 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity - offender 18 or over - penetration at the first opportunity had had to wait three years for his case to come to court because of delays in the judicial system while his health was poor.
Ms Churcher said that in that time, Trevena has complied with the terms of his order only to have limited access to the internet and to work with his sex offender officers. She said: "He has admitted his mistake and wants help for them. He felt isolated. He has poor wellbeing. He is someone who could be managed in the community. He is in poor health and is about to have some tests done for liver cirrhosis. These offences are of course inexcusable but he has been tested in the community over the last three years."
His Honour Judge Simon Carr said Trevena's offences were extremely serious and involved sexual contact with what he thought was a 14-year-old girl who was in fact an adult posing as a child and the communications over six days were sexual.
He acknowledged that it had taken three years for the case to come to court, Trevena's poor health and age but warned him that he would have no qualm in sending him to prison if he ever reoffended again.
He said Trevena had shown remorse for his actions and this had been an attempt and noted the work he is already doing with sex offenders officers and agreed he could be managed in the community. Trevena was sentenced to two years in prison suspended for two years, 35 sessions of an accredited programme, 30 days of rehabilitation activity requirement and was again put on the sex offenders' register for life. A sexual harm prevention for 10 years was also imposed on him with restrictions on accessing the internet.
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