The 13-year-old victim was contacted via Snapchat by Sean Yearnshire back in June 2022.
Messages found between the defendant and his victim showed that Yearnshire had agreed to meet up with her, with some text exchanges progressing of a sexual nature.
It was then that the victim’s mother became aware of what was going on and contacted us – and we launched an investigation.
After being arrested, in interview Yearnshire claimed the victim had told him that she was 19 and that he met her through the dating app Tinder.
However, we recovered messages proved she had told him she was actually 13 and was not a user of that particular app.
Yearnshire, 24, was then charged with one count of sexual communication with a child and another of meeting a child under the age of 16 following grooming.
After pleading guilty to both charges at an earlier hearing, Yearnshire, of Montague Street, Newcastle, was last month, jailed for a total of 35 months at Newcastle Crown Court.
He was also made subject of a sexual harm prevention order and will remain on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years.
The victim and her family have shown huge courage in reporting Yearnshire’s grooming, and helping us gather all the necessary evidence in the case.
We sincerely hope this conviction offers them some comfort and a sense of closure.
Yearnshire knowingly and willingly manipulated his victim for purely selfish reasons with the aim of sexual gratification. We are pleased that he is now behind bars and has been made the subject of stringent orders which aim to curb any future offending.
For more information on how to stay safe online, visit the Northumbria Police website.