Man caught by paedophile hunters is jailed after trying to meet teenage girl at Hartlepool leisure centre

David Dunn attempted to meet up with someone he believed was a 14-year-old girl in Hartlepool after speaking to her on the internet.

But she turned out to be a decoy internet profile set up by paedophile hunters.

Dunn, 52, had arranged to meet the girl at Mill House Leisure Centre, in Hartlepool, but was confronted by members of the group.

He later pleaded guilty to a charge of attempting to meet a girl under 16 when he appeared before Durham Crown Court on January 13.

Dunn, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 10 months in prison after the court was told he had nowhere to live meaning he could not be rehabilitated in the community.

He had no similar previous convictions, but a pre-sentence report said he posed a high risk of harm.

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