Persistent Wakefield paedophile snared by three hunter groups with online decoy profiles
An undeterred pervert continued the trawl the net looking for children, even after being arrested.
Twisted Matthew Ashworth was detained after arranging to meet one youngster, but after being released, targeted two more youngsters online.
But in all three instances, the profiles were run by hunter groups looking to snare paedophiles.
Thr 53-year-old was jailed at Leeds Crown Court after admitting three counts of attempting to engage in sexual communications with a child, attempting to arrange or facilitate the commission of child sex offence and attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.
In August 2025 he latched onto the first profile who told him she was 14.
He told her not to tell anyone about their conversations because he could go to prison.
He talked about having sex with her, wanting to take her virginity and that she would not get pregnant because he had “the snip”.
Ashworth arranged to meet the girl and said they would “spend days in bed”. He also sent her a picture of his erect penis.
He was confronted by the hunter group at the pre-arranged meeting point, then arrested by police.
Ashworth, of Towngate, Ossett, was released on bail with specific instructions not to contact anyone under 16.
But he ignored the bail conditions, and just weeks later he was back on Facebook under a new name and targeting a supposed 12-year-old girl.
He told her he wanted to “make love” to her and kiss her, and encouraged her to masturbate.
Ashworth then made contact with a 14-year-old girl from Northern Ireland, and said he wanted to come to Belfast and get a hotel with her. He went tinto graphic detail about performing sex acts with her.
He was arrested again and held on remand, appearing in court over a video link from HMP Leeds.
He has five previous convictions for mainly driving offences.
Mitigating, Jessica Heggie said he suffers from COPD and undiagnosed PTSD. She conceded: “He knows that the only option today is immediate imprisonment.”
The court heard he had lost his job and his friendships due to his conduct.
Judge Neil Clark jailed him for six years.
He was put on the sex offender register for life and given a 10-year sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) to curb his internet use.