The grooming messages of TV producer who arranged to meet '13-year-old girl' at Leeds United match

A TELEVISION producer who travelled to Leeds from his home in Ireland to meet what he thought was a 13-year-old girl for sexual activity has been jailed for 18 months.
The man outside Leeds Crown Court before being jailedThe man outside Leeds Crown Court before being jailed
The man outside Leeds Crown Court before being jailed

Kieran Creaven was arrested outside The Queens Hotel in Leeds after being confronted by members of a paedophile vigilante group.

-> TV producer caught in Predator Exposure sting trying to meet 13-year-old girlCreaven travelled to West Yorkshire after making arrangements to meet the 'girl' at the hotel.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The 55-year-old, from Dublin, had made contact with a fake Facebook profile for a girl called 'Keelie', set up by members of the group 'Predator Exposure'.

Kieran CreavenKieran Creaven
Kieran Creaven

Creaven, who worked as a producer with Irish broadcaster RTE, sent explicit images of himself to the profile before making arrangements to travel to Leeds.

He pleaded guilty to a charge of attempting to meet a girl under the age of 16 years of age following grooming.

Creaven also pleaded guilty to a second charge of attempting to cause or incite a girl aged between 13 and 15 to engage in non-penetrative sexual activity.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A judge told Creaven the offences were too serious to impose anything other than an immediate prison sentence.

Kieran CreavenKieran Creaven
Kieran Creaven

The explicit messages

Kitty Colley, prosecuting, said Creaven created a fake Facebook profile of himself, claiming to be aged in his thirties and calling himself Jimmy.

Creaven made contact with the 'girl' over a four month period up to his arrest in November.

He sent messages saying "I wish you were here in bed with me" and described her profile picture as "smoldering".

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Ms Colley said Creaven also sent messages saying he worked in film and television in order to impress her.

He initially arranged to travel to Leeds in October last year to see a Leeds United match and made arrangements to meet 'Keelie'.

The court heard he had to cancel the meeting due to illness but arranged to come for another Leeds United match on November 18.

Creavan told 'Keelie' to stay with him at the hotel and he would pretend to be her father.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Ms Colley said Creaven was confronted by members of the vigiliante group who filmed him on Facebook Live.

Police were contacted and he was arrested.

He had two boxes of condoms in his possession.

Addiction to internet porn

Creaven was interviewed and told police he had developed an addiction to pornography featuring children aged eight to 13 years old.

Ian Cook, mitigating, said Creaven committed the offences at a time when he was drinking heavily and experiencing difficulties in his marriage.

Mr Cook said his client had also set up fake personas on gay and lesbian dating sites.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He said: "He was living an almost cyberworld of internet pornography."

He added: "He went on to gay dating sites - he's not a gay man. He went on to lesbian sites - he's clearly not a gay woman."

Mr Cook said Creaven's marriage of seven years was "shattered" and he had lost his job and many of his friends.

The lawyer said Creaven was "relieved" at being arrested and was receiving help to address his offending.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Judge Simon Phillips, QC, said: "As far as you were concerned, the objects of your affection was a real child."

"I note that you went to considerable lengths to meet the girl in circumstances where the potential for sexual activity was high."