Sexual predator jailed for five years

Craig Stockbridge

A MAN who posed on-line as a teenage boy and girl to get youngsters to send him sexual pictures of themselves has been jailed.

Craig Stockbridge groomed his victims, who included a 15-year-old boy from Oldham, on social networking sites for young people.

The 27-year-old, of no fixed address, pretended to be a teenager using aliases Lee Davis and Jessica Davis.

He made friends with seven boys, aged 13-15, from Oldham, Rochdale, Lancashire, Bath and Scotland.

He then incited them to send indecent photographs of themselves.

When one boy refused to send any more, he threatened to post the images he already had on the web.

Stockbridge admitted causing or inciting a child into sexual activity and the possession of indecent photographs of a child.

A further four offences of inciting a child into sexual activity were asked to be taken into consideration.

He was yesterday given an indeterminate sentence at Bolton Crown Court for the public protection and ordered to serve a minimum of five years. A Sexual Offences Prevention Order was imposed and he was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders’ Register for life.

Det-Con Andy Pilling, from the Greater Manchester Police sexual-crime unit, said: “Stockbridge is a manipulative and deceitful man who posed as a teenager to try and get his hands on indecent images.

“When one his victims became suspicious and refused to do what he demanded of them he made very real and very scary threats in relation to the images they had already sent, leaving them not knowing where to turn.

“Thankfully most of his victims confided in their parents who in turn contacted police and Stockbridge has rightly been brought to justice.”