EIGHT suspected paedophiles in Scotland are being prosecuted for grooming children, under new powers introduced to crack down on internet predators.
The offence of grooming children with the purpose of having sexual activity, introduced amid concern about youngsters being targeted over the internet, came into force in Scotland in October 2005.
While similar legislation has been enacted south
of the Border, Scotland landed the first successful prosecution under the Protection of Children and Prevention of Sexual Offences Act in September, when Ralph Wassell, 57, of Stirling, who groomed teenage girls on the internet, was jailed for three years.
Wassell admitted driving 90 miles to Eyemouth to meet a 14-year-old outside a school after pretending he was 20.
The Scotsman has learned that a further eight court cases under the legislation are pending. Under the act, an accused found guilty of grooming can be jailed for a maximum of ten years.
Last year, we revealed that detectives posing as young girls in internet chatrooms had caught five potential child molesters in the first nationwide grooming crackdown carried out by Scottish police.
It followed the completion of Operation Ore, a massive investigation into child pornography on the net.
Scottish children are, according to studies, the most likely in Britain to meet someone to whom they are introduced on the internet, and police said protecting children online had become "of the highest priority".
Before the act came into force, police and prosecutors used existing sexual offence legislation, such as committing lewd and libidinous practices, and other known offences, such as breach of the peace, to crack down on grooming.
But offenders were able to avoid prosecution as no legislation specifically outlawed the act of grooming.
Detective Chief Inspector Gillian MacDonald, of the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA), said: "The act was a very positive and welcome step in terms of equipping law enforcement agencies with specific powers to tackle the predatory activities of paedophiles, who often seek to develop relationships and win the trust of children prior to physical sexual abuse taking place.
"SCDEA e-crime were involved in the first successful prosecution utilising this legislation anywhere in the UK.
"The protection of children both online and offline continues to be of the highest priority for Scottish police forces."
A spokesman for the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre, a body dedicated to tracking paedophiles online and promoting safe internet use, said: "It's vital the law keeps pace with - if not is one step ahead of - the way in which technological advances, such as the internet, can be used for criminal gain.
"Online grooming is part of the horrific crime of child sex abuse. It's right and proper that we apply all aspects of the law to tracking down those who engage in this criminal activity."
FIRST PROSECUTION
RALPH Wassell was the first person to be prosecuted, in September, under the Protection of Children and Prevention of Sexual Offences Act.
Jedburgh Sheriff Court heard how Wassell, 57, a retired IT consultant, had pretended he was a man called Rod when he met two schoolgirls in a chatroom.
He drove to Eyemouth to meet the girls, but when he pulled up at their school gates in his BMW, one of them panicked.
When the girls went for lunch at a petrol station Wassell parked nearby. When confronted by one of them, he said he had gone there for "a snog".
Police were contacted after one of the girls' friends reported him to a teacher.
Wassell admitted communicating with a 14-year-old and then meeting her with the intention of engaging in unlawful sexual activity. He also admitted breaching a bail condition not to contact children.
The full article contains 641 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
