In 2019, the Offender Database reported that Warren Wild, then 51, of Huddersfield Road, Holmfirth, was sentenced at Manchester’s Minshull Street Crown Court. The former sales representative and father-of-two was jailed for six years after his “secret life” as a child predator was exposed by police.
The court heard that Warren Wild utilised the Grindr app to target and groom teenage boys. In August 2016, he began communicating with a 13-year-old boy under a fake name, encouraging the victim to send sexually explicit photographs. A few months later, Wild contacted a second victim on the same platform. After grooming the boy with sexual messages, Wild offered him £100 for a meeting. He subsequently picked up the child in his car and drove to a car park where he paid for sexual acts.
The abuse continued as Wild met the second victim on two further occasions at secluded spots, exchanging sexual acts for money and promises of electronic goods like an iPad and a games console. Wild also requested photos of the victim in his school uniform and pictures from “when he was younger.” When Greater Manchester Police raided Wild’s West Yorkshire home in March 2018, they discovered a collection of over 1,000 indecent images of children. Crucially, they found he had distributed more than 100 images to other paedophiles, 75 of which were photos he had taken or received of his own victim.
Prosecutor Lisa Boocock stated that the discovery led to the total collapse of Wild’s personal life, resulting in the loss of his marriage, his job, and the family home. Wild pleaded guilty to one count of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, three counts of paying for the sexual services of a child, three counts of making indecent photographs, and three counts of distribution.
Judge Angela Nield sentenced Warren Wild to six years in prison, noting that he presented a clear risk of sexual harm to young boys. In addition to his custodial term, Wild was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life and was issued a lifetime ban on working with children.
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