Southend man jailed for child sexual offences
Christopher Stuckey admitted several charges
A Southend man has been jailed, after he was caught trying to engage in child sexual communications with a child by undercover police officers.
Christopher Stuckey thought he was chatting online to a 13-year-old girl over a four-day period in June last year.
He also thought he was talking to the aunt of a second child.
During this three-month interaction he planned to sexually assault an eight-year-old girl.
But on both occasions he was talking to an undercover officers.
Basildon Crown Court heard that the 59-year-old sent the vile messages and images to the officer, who was posing as the child’s aunt, saying that he wanted to commit serious sexual offences.
And when he thought he was talking to the 13-year-old child, he sent sexually explicit messages and asked her to send him photos. He sent a photo of himself.
Officers from Essex Police Online Investigation Team (POLIT) arrested Stuckey at his Prospect Road home in July.
They seized numerous mobile phones, linking him to the offences.
He made no comment throughout interview, but admitted the offences when he appeared at court.
He pleaded guilty to:
Attempting to arrange or facilitate the commission of a child sexual offence between April and June 2024 – namely, the sexual assault of a child under 13.
Attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child
Two counts of distributing indecent images of children
Three counts of possession of indecent images of children (7 Category A, 7 Category B and 3 Category C)
On Thursday 12 June Stuckey was sentenced to seven years and also ordered to serve an additional five years on extended licence.
He was given a 15-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and placed on the Sex Offenders Register for life.
PC Simon Clarke, from POLIT in Essex said: "Although Stuckey didn’t sexually abuse a child, he showed intent to, and the images found at his home also show he is a danger to children. A child is victimised when an indecent image is taken and every time it is viewed or shared."
Victims' code
Essex Police says it puts victims at the heart of everything. The Victims’ Code explains the rights that everyone can expect to receive as a victim of crime, and helps the force to define what it must do for all victims from their initial contact, until the conclusion of their case.
Find out more about the code and to understand the rights of a victim of crime, on the support for victims and witnesses of crime page.
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Keeping your child safe online is not always an easy task. New technology, regular updates or upgrades can change how things work, sometimes making it difficult to keep up.
So, to help, police have put together some simple things you can do to make your child’s online devices safer.
Visit the Sort your settings page to find out how.