In 2019, the Offender Database reported that Andrew Spink, then 54, of Kirby Hill, Boroughbridge, was sentenced to 12 months in prison at York Crown Court. Spink, a divorced father of two and grandfather, was caught in a “sting” operation after driving to York with the intent of having sex with a 14-year-old girl.
The court heard that Spink used the username “Andy North Yorks” to target a fictional 14-year-old girl on a dating site and the Kik messenger app. Over several weeks in 2017, he bombarded the “girl”—who was actually a member of a paedophile-hunter group—with sexually charged messages, compliments, and instructions to perform sex acts on herself. Spink implored the child to buy “nice underwear” and stated he “adored her,” claiming he would “not be able to keep his hands off her” once they met. He eventually drove from his home to a property in York for a planned rendezvous.
Upon arrival, Spink was confronted by the hunter group. Although he attempted to flee the scene, he was later arrested at his home by North Yorkshire Police. During the trial, it was revealed that Spink attempted to “minimise” his actions to probation officers, claiming he was “lonely” and felt on a par with a teenager. Judge Andrew Stubbs QC dismissed these claims, stating that Spink was an adult who sought to exploit a child.
Andrew Spink was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, and engaging in sexual communication with a child.
As a result of his conviction, Spink is required to sign the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years. He was also made subject to a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), which strictly prohibits him from having any inadvertent contact with girls under the age of 16. He is managed under the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) in North Yorkshire to ensure he is monitored and prevented from further predatory behaviour.
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