Edinburgh man banned from having contact with children after being caught sending sex images to ‘schoolgirl’

Alexanda Laverock sent sick sexual messages to a social media account belong to a ‘14 year-old child named Stacey’ after making contact with her in October last year.

Laverock, 36, asked the girl if she was “into older [men]”, instructed her how to masturbate and sent images of his erect penis during the deviant messaging.

But instead of speaking to a child, the pervert was in contact with an adult decoy from the paedophile hunter group Scotland’s Child Protection Team Against Sexual Abuse.

A photo of Alexanda Laverock being confronted by the paedophile hunter group. | Alexander Lawrie

Members of the group then tracked the shop worker down to his capital home and live streamed the confrontation to more than 70,000 of the group’s followers on Facebook on October 31.

Laverock pleaded guilty to sending sexual written communication and a sexual image to who he believed was a child in October last year when he appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court last month.

He was back in the dock for sentencing on Friday, February 7, where Sheriff Christopher Dickson told him he had committed “a very serious offence”, but spared him a jail sentence.

Laverock, from the city’s Tollcross area, was placed on the sex offenders register for 18 months and ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work in the community.

The sheriff also placed him on a social work supervision order for 18 months and issued a conduct requirement where Laverock is prohibited from having contact with any child under age of 18.

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Sheriff Dickson added that Laverock’s name has also been forwarded to Scottish Ministers for inclusion on the list of those deemed unsuitable for working with children and vulnerable adults.

Previously, the court heard Laverock contacted the social media account set up by the paedophile hunter group decoy before moving the online chats to WhatsApp and Snapchat.

He soon began sending disturbing sexual comments and on one occasion told the child he was carrying out a solo sex act and sent the images of his penis.

The court was told Laverock had also sent the schoolgirl instructions on how to masturbate and his sick messages included him telling her “it will feel good”.