A depraved firefighter paid young girls to send him nude photos

A former firefighter who paid children to send him explicit images online has been jailed after a trial.

Robert Stevenson used social media sites and messaged women online, offering them money to send nude photos, most of which were of young girls.

The 31-year-old, formerly of Long Eaton, Derbyshire, sent a photo of himself in uniform to one of his victims, who claimed to be 19.

Derbyshire Police became aware of the incident when one of Stevenson’s victims, a 15-year-old girl, told police he had threatened to post an explicit photo of her online.

Robert Stevenson is now in prison

Derbyshire Police/PA

Stevenson had spoken to the girl via direct messages on Instagram and asked her if she wanted to earn £100.

The conversation later moved to Snapchat, with Stevenson telling her he was 17 after she told him she was 17.

He was arrested and his devices were confiscated. Checks revealed he had been messaging a number of girls and paying some of them to send him photos and videos of themselves.

Analysis of his bank account revealed that he had made numerous payments to various girls.

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Robert Stevenson, formerly of Long Eaton

Derbyshire Police

He was subsequently charged with a number of offences, including causing/inciting the sexual exploitation of a child between the ages of 13 and 17; inciting/inciting a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity and taking an indecent photo/pseudo-photo of a child.

After denying the charges, Stevenson was found guilty following a trial at Derby Crown Court and jailed for seven years.

He has also been given a sexual harm prevention order and placed on the sex offenders register.

Child Sexual Exploitation Supervisor, Detective Sergeant Sophie Draycott, said: “This has been a lengthy investigation which has revealed Stevenson is communicating with children in a sexual manner across the country.”

DS Draycott continued: “His behavior was appalling and repetitive, so I am pleased that he has now been brought to justice for his crimes and is serving a prison sentence. “I would also like to thank all the victims for their courage and support throughout this period. the case.

“With social media being such a big part of our society, I would encourage all parents to be aware of who their children are communicating with online, urging them to ensure that they do not send images to anyone also send messages and give their children the opportunity to know that if they receive unwanted or inappropriate messages, they should tell an adult.”