A man who was snared by a police officer posing as a 14-year-old girl online has been spared jail.
Edward Russell, 27, demanded indecent photos and videos of the “girl” and others he met in a chat room for teenagers.
He was also found to be in possession of two indecent images – one showing a young teenager in an “erotic” pose and another featuring the sexual abuse of boy aged between three and five.
Russell appeared for sentencing at Inverness Sheriff Court having previously admitted charges of sending indecent communications and possessing indecent images of children.
At a previous hearing, Inverness Sheriff Court was told how Russell also used WhatsApp to communicate indecently between September 13 2023 and September 21 2023.
Fiscal depute Emily Hood told Sheriff Sara Matheson that this enabled police to trace his mobile number and he was arrested.
Indecent images found
Ms Hood said Russell’s phone was also seized and two indecent images were found.
He had also sent photographs of himself, private parts and sexual act.
Solicitor Grant Daglish said that Russell was a first offender and asked Sheriff Sara Matheson to consider alternatives to a custodial sentence.
Sheriff Matheson instead placed Russell, of Meadow Crescent, Elgin, on a community payback order with three years supervision and a requirement that he participate in the Moving Forward 2 Change programme for sexual offenders.
She also made him subject to an overnight curfew which would be monitored by electronic tag and placed him on the sex offenders register for three years.
