A Scots paedophile drove 400 miles to Derbyshire with a balaclava, a knife and Viagra-style tablets to meet a 13-year-old girl he had groomed online.
Christopher Marshall, of Dundee, sent explicit photographs of his private parts to the victim, who turned out to be a decoy, and a second girl he thought was aged just 12.
Derbyshire Live reports the 60-year-old father-of-two told one of the youngsters that sex would "hurt the first time" but then be enjoyable.
She said she had run away from home so he drove from where he lived in Dundee to meet her with the items in his vehicle.
But when he arrived to meet Leah, the teen turned out to be decoy used by a self-styled paedophile hunter group who snare people who demonstrate a sexual interest in children.
Jailing Marshall for three-and-a-half years, Recorder Michael Auty QC said: "There is a real and genuine concern to protect children from those who seek sexual intercourse with them.
"There is a world of difference between those who fantasise online and those who go through with it.
"It is where people stop and you didn't. It is clear to me from the items you had with you in the car there was an intention to carry out a penetrative sexual offence with this girl if the opportunity arose.
"That she was a decoy and not a real child is mitigation."
Jon Fountain, prosecuting at Derby Crown Court, sitting at Nottingham Crown Court, said a paedophile vigilante group called Demon Hunters set up a decoy Facebook profile for a 12-year-old called Tia in September last year.
He said Marshall sent her a friend request which was accepted and the two began exchanging messages.
The prosecutor said the decoy told him she was unhappy at home and so he suggested she move in with him in Scotland, bringing her birth certificate with her.
Mr Fountain said: "He then made friends with one of her Facebook friends called Leah, who was also a decoy.
"He sent her photographs of his (private parts) and asked her if she would like to play with it.
"He asked her about her genitalia and this continued for about 10 days. She said she had run away from home and so he said he would come from Dundee to Derbyshire and meet her.
"But when he arrived in Chesterfield he was met by the hunter group.
"They called the police who arrested him, searched his car and found four Viagra-style tablets, a balaclava and a knife.
"He said he had the balaclava as it was issued at work and on checking, his workplace confirmed this."
Marshall, of no fixed address and who appeared over a video-link from HMP Nottingham, pleaded guilty to attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming, attempting to engage a child in sexual communication and possession of a bladed article.
He has no previous convictions.
Fergus Malone, mitigating, argued that his client could be better managed in the community and not behind bars.
He said: "He lost his way. His mother died and his partner, the mother of his two children, also died in 2018. This has been his first time in prison and he is on a vulnerable person's wing."
As well as the jail term, Recorder Auty handed the defendant a lifetime sexual harm prevention order and placed him on the sex offender register, also for life.
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