A man who groomed a 14-year-old girl online to send him indecent images of herself has been jailed for two-and-a-half years.

Curtis Robinson, 24, of Snowdonia Way, Huntingdon, befriended the girl on a chat site claiming to be a 17-year-old boy before asking her to send him naked images of herself.

Robinson began talking to the girl in May last year, but she initially ignored messages from him. He then set up a pseudo account, under a girl’s name, and contacted the victim again.

After Robinson built up the fake relationship with the 14 year old under the pseudo name, he then began to incite her into sending him more images threatening to share the images he had from the fake account over the internet if she did not.

The girl alerted the chat site which informed Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP).

A warrant was carried out at Robinson’s address and he was arrested. Officers discovered indecent images on his computer and phone.

They also found he had set up the fake account to interact with young girls online.

He pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to inciting a child to engage in pornography, possessing indecent images and distributing indecent images.

At Peterborough Crown Court on Tuesday he was sentenced to two-and-a-half years and placed on the Sex Offenders register.

Detective Constable Gareth Purdy said: “Robinson befriended this young girl online. He was fully aware of her age and tried to take advantage of her vulnerability.

“Thankfully the victim reported him to the chat site.

“We would always encourage parents to notify police if they suspect their child has been contacted by older people online.”