A PAEDOPHILE who offered someone believed to be a teenage girl £100 to perform a sex act has been hauled back in court.

Chris Cooper was previously allowed to walk free in June last year, despite discussing meeting up with a 13-year-old girl at McDonald’s and sending her an explicit image.

The 51-year-old was handed a suspended prison sentence and slapped with a sexual harm prevention order with the aim of limiting his offending ability.

But he breached that order earlier this year and was ordered to appear back before Chester Crown Court on Friday, July 21.

Joshua Sanderson-Kirk, prosecuting, revealed to the court that Cooper breached his court order on March 31 by using a device capable of accessing the internet without notifying Cheshire Police.

This order was imposed on June 22 last year after he offering to pay the ‘girl’ £100 to perform a sex act on herself.

The defendant also told her how he ‘prefers younger girls’ and asked the supposed 13-year-old girl for naked pictures – before sending an explicit picture of himself.

But the teenage girl was actually an undercover law enforcement officer operating a decoy profile going by the name of Lucy.

Cooper was later charged with and admitted attempting to cause a child aged 13-15 years to watch an image of sexual activity and attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child.

The court previously heard that he initially contacted the ‘girl’ on Kik Messenger where he said: “Want £100 hun? x”

He offered her the money if he could perform a sex act on herself and asked questions such as if she was home alone and if he could see her naked.

The pair continued to talk and discussed meeting at a McDonald’s near the Trafford Centre. On one occasion, he sent an explicit image to Lucy.

It was said how the defendant continued to ask for naked pictures, and when Lucy refused he said: “It’s your loss.”

Cooper, who had no previous convictions, was arrested on October 31, 2019, where he told officers: “It was all a mistake, I was drunk.”

He said that he was on holiday in Greece at the time and was ‘sexually frustrated’, as well as how his actions were a ‘moment of madness’ and that he is a ‘nice, normal guy’.

Judge Simon Berkson described the messages as ‘disgusting and disgraceful’ and passed a six-month prison sentence suspended for 18 months, as well as 300 hours of unpaid work.

Cooper was also told he must sign on the sex offenders register for seven years and abide by the terms of a sexual harm prevention order for the same length of time – which he has now breached.

For that breach, judge Steven Everett sentenced Cooper, now of Wenlock Road in Runcorn, to a 12-month community order, including 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days.