PAEDOPHILE hunters confronted a man in a hotel after he had arranged to meet a '13-year-old girl' there.

Troy Foster, 28, from Brynmawr was caught red-handed at the ‘Raglan Hotel’ in Monmouth after being set up by a group, Cardiff Crown Court was told.

James Evans, prosecuting, said the defendant had been grooming the two ‘children’ online while believing they were a 13-year-old girl and a 14-year-old girl.

But they were “imaginary victims” after he fell into a trap set up by “adult decoys” last Christmas.

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Foster had sent a photo of his penis and encouraged the ‘schoolgirls’ to sexually touch themselves in chats over Facebook and WhatsApp.

The judge, Recorder Aidan Eardley KC, told the defendant: “With the 14-year-old girl, you expressed a desire to meet up and do ‘sex stuff’ in a car.

“You said you could teach her everything and you also discussed locations where you could meet up.

“You stressed that this matter was a secret between you because it was illegal.”

He added: “You believed the other girl was 13 and from Lincoln.

“You asked her to meet you at the Raglan Hotel in Monmouth and it was here that you were confronted.”

Foster, of Chapel Street, pleaded guilty to two counts of attempting to incite an underage girl to engage in sexual activity.

The offences took place between December 18 and Christmas Eve last year.

The defendant has no previous convictions.

Hilary Roberts representing Foster said in mitigation: “The offending took place over a relatively short period of time.

“The defendant is still a young man and he does express shame and remorse.

“The likelihood of him reoffending is regarded as low.”

Mr Roberts urged the judge to spare his client a prison sentence so that he could be rehabilitated in the community.

Recorder Eardley told Foster: “You were attempting to normalise sexual activity with these ‘children’.

“The case is aggravated by the fact that there were two victims here.”

He said his offending was so serious that only an immediate custodial sentence was justified.

The defendant was jailed for 32 months.

Foster was told he will have to register as a sex offender for the next 10 years and he was made the subject of a five-year sexual harm prevention order.