Borders pervert who travelled to Edinburgh to meet ‘13-year-old schoolgirl’ for sex is jailed

Pervert snared by paedophile hunter group in Edinburgh

A pervert who attempted to meet up with a young schoolgirl for sex after contacting her on social media has been jailed for 12 months.

Michael Ennis sent sick sexual messages to a profile he believed belonged to a 13-year-old girl named Poppy and then arranged to travel to Edinburgh from his home in the Borders to meet up with her.

But the 65-year-old was caught out when instead of meeting the child he was confronted by members of the paedophile hunter group Online Child Safety Team who had set-up an online sting.

The confrontation between the group and Ennis outside the capital’s Waverley train station was live streamed on Facebook and viewed by thousands of social media users in November 2022.

During the incident Ennis, of Woodstock Avenue, Galashiels, feigned illness and lay on the ground pretending to be unconscious until police arrived on the scene and arrested him.

Ennis pleaded guilty to charges of intentionally sending indecent messages to who he believed was a child and attempting to meet with the child on November 27, 2022, when he appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court last month.

Michael Ennis feigned illness and lay on the ground pretending to be unconscious when confronted by the group outside Waverley Train Station.

He returned to the dock for sentencing today, Tuesday, April 9, where the court heard the supermarket worker cares for his elderly mother and has only one previous conviction for a road traffic matter.

Lawyer Andrew Docherty, defending, said his client is “very aware he has crossed the custody threshold” but added it was “unlikely he will commit further offences like this”.

Sheriff Julius Komorowski said: “These are both grave offences and you spoke to a person you believed to be 13 years of age explicitly and in a manner of considerable detail.

“You went to the extent of going to the train station to meet up and, making it clear that the absolute abhorrence these offences are viewed, I do not consider any sentence would properly deal with this other than one of imprisonment.”

Ennis was jailed for 12 months and placed on the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years.

Michael Ennis pictured outside Edinburgh Sheriff Court before he was sentenced to 12 months in jail.

A written narration into the events said Ennis contacted the online profile of a 13-year-old child named Poppy from Liverpool in November 2022.

He sent scores of Facebook and WhatsApp messages asking the girl what sexual positions she would enjoy and repeatedly asked her to send him naked pictures of herself.

The messages include one stating “I wish you were here now so we can have sex now” and a second said “I know you’re underage but it sounds good to have sex with you”.

He arranged to travel to Edinburgh to meet the girl at midday on November 27, 2022 but was subsequently confronted by six members of the hunter group and later arrested.