Army medic, 28, offered ‘12-year-old girl’ £300 to take her virginity
A British Army medic who offered a '12-year-old girl' hundreds of pounds to take her virginity has been jailed.
Private Peter Harries, 28, believed he was messaging a child called Chloe while using the app Kik but he was actually talking to two undercover police officers, a military court heard.
The married father was told the girl was 12 years old and from the UK before he offered to pay her £5 for naked pictures, £10 for a naked video and up to £100 for sex.
But when 'Chloe' asked whether it mattered that she had not had sex before, he said he would pay her £300 as it was her first time, the military court was told.
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Pte Harries, of 1 Medical Regiment, was arrested and upon investigation, indecent images - including one Category A, the highest category - were found on his computer in his living quarters in Tidworth, Wiltshire.
The medic, who has served in the army for almost four years, pleaded guilty to three charges of attempting to incite a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity and one count of making indecent images.
At Bulford Military Court, he was sentenced to 30 months in prison and dismissed from the Army.
The court heard that in February 2020, Pte Harries began speaking to what he thought was a schoolgirl called Chloe.
Shortly after a brief introduction, he began to ask the fake profile, which did not have an image, for nudes and sex, the court heard.
Major Jon Griffiths, prosecuting, said: "He said 'I will f*** you even though you have never done anything before'."
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During those conversations, he told her that he was a medic at a hospital from Wiltshire and gave her his phone number which police used to track him down to his parent’s address, the court heard.
Following his arrest in March 2020, Pte Harries gave a no comment interview to police before pleading guilty to the four charges.
Jonathan Lynch, defending, told the court: "He is disgusted by the part of him that finds children attractive, he feels real despair and finds that part of him abhorrent.”
Sentencing Pte Harries, Judge Advocate Edward Legard, added: "Possession of child pornography is not a victimless crime, far from it. They are often young vulnerable and are often recruited from impoverished backgrounds.”
Pte Harries was jailed for 30 months but will serve half his term in custody with the remainder on licence.
He was dismissed from the Army and placed under a sexual harm prevention order for 10 years.
He must notify police of his address and name indefinitely.
