Man drove from Lincolnshire to South Tyneside to sexually abuse 14-year-old after Snapchat messages

A man who regularly drove from his Lincolnshire home to South Tyneside to have sexual activity with a 14-year-old girl has been jailed.

Daniel Potterton's car was intercepted by police on 2 August 2022 and they found the victim sitting in the front seat of his car.

On Thursday 15 December 2022, he was jailed for six years.

Newcastle Crown Court heard how the 20-year-old began driving to the victim's home after randomly adding her on Snapchat and sending her messages in June.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said he knew of the girl's age and groomed her to believe they were in a relationship. Potterton then travelled to the North East to abduct her for sexual intercourse, the CPS added.

After the victim's parents became aware of what was happening, they alerted police and an investigation was launched.

Northumbria Police's Operation Dragoon team began monitoring Potterton's vehicle and intercepted it shortly after 9pm on 2 August 2022 in the North East.

Potterton, of Kirton, Boston, was arrested and a review of his internet history found a number of searches relating to sexual activity with minors.

The 20-year-old pleaded guilty in October 2022 to two counts of sexual activity with a child, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, abducting a child, and meeting a child following sexual grooming.

Following the conviction, Eve McDonnell, senior crown prosecutor with the CPS North East, said: "Daniel Potterton preyed on his young victim over social media, grooming her into believing they were in a relationship before travelling to the North East to abduct her for sexual intercourse.

"The CPS has worked closely with Northumbria Police to bring a robust case against him, leaving him little alternative but to plead guilty to these very serious charges."

Detective Sergeant Jodie Faulkner from Northumbria Police said: "This is a very upsetting case that saw Potterton target his under-age victim on social media before sexually exploiting her over a number of weeks.

"His behaviour has had a shattering impact on both his victim and her family. I sincerely hope his conviction in court offers them some comfort.

"I would like to thank the victim and her family for their strength and cooperation throughout this case, as well as our Operation Dragoon officers who swiftly acted on our intelligence and were able to intercept Potterton’s vehicle as soon as it re-entered our force area.

"As a force, we are committed to continue protecting the most vulnerable in our communities and bringing effective justice against perpetrators."

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