A YOUTH worker was jailed after he fell into a trap set by paedophile hunters who duped him into believing he was "grooming" a 10-year-old schoolgirl.

Brandino Ciccione, 51, of Graham Street, Newport, was fooled following an online sting operation by the Angels of Innocence group.

Prosecutor Matthew Cobbe said the defendant had tried to groom a primary schoolgirl called Rosie.

But Cardiff Crown Court heard Ciccione’s intended victim was a fiction, a decoy created by the Angels of Innocence team.

MORE NEWS

After contact had been made, the defendant sent them a graphic image of himself and asked her to commit a sex act on herself.

Ciccione was arrested by the police in February 2020 after they were handed the evidence the paedophiles hunters had gathered.

He denied the offences and was convicted by a jury after a trial of attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.

The defendant was also found guilty of attempting sexual communication with a child.

Harry Baker, mitigating, asked the court to take into account the defendant’s previous good character and lack of previous convictions.

His barrister also put forward that Ciccione had been assessed as posing a low risk of reoffending.

The judge, Recorder Dyfed Llion Thomas, told the defendant: “There was grooming behaviour. Your intention was clear. You wanted sexual contact with a child.

“You tried to get her to carry out a sex act on herself.”

Recorder Thomas added: “It was of some concern when it was discovered that you had been working with young people and children for some time.”

The court was told however there was no evidence of Ciccione being involved in any further offences in his role as a youth worker.

He was jailed for five years and ordered to register as a sex offender for life.

The defendant was also made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and must pay a victim surcharge following his release from prison.