A Perth railway worker who danced topless for a paedophile hunter posing as a schoolgirl has been banned from playparks.
A sheriff told disgraced James Kettles he cannot even download a phone app or buy a Smart TV, without first getting permission from a supervising officer.
It was part of a package of restrictions ordered as a direct alternative to jail.
Kettles, 63, sent a series of sickening messages to an online decoy called Ruby, who repeatedly told him she was a 13-year-old girl.
He chatted to the Catfish-style account in the afternoons while his wife was at work, Perth Sheriff Court heard.
At one point, he tried to get the attention of the “girl” by filming himself dancing and singing in his living room while stripped to his waist.
Kettles was unaware Ruby was operated by a member of Forbidden Scotland, an online paedophile hunter group.
Members of the team descended on Kettles’ Maple Place home in October 2019 and broadcast their sting on Facebook.
All of Kettles’ chat and videos were logged and handed over to police.
Dramatic fall from grace
Kettles was last month found guilty after trial of attempting to communicate indecently with a child.
He returned to the dock at Perth Sheriff Court and was told he could have been jailed.
He was instead ordered to carry out 250 hours of unpaid work, as a direct alternative to custody.
He was also placed on the Sex Offenders Register for three years.
It means he is banned from playparks and playgrounds and cannot have unsupervised contact with other children.
Sheriff William Wood told him: “You engaged online with a girl who was held out as being Ruby Smith, a child of 13 years of age.
“She was in fact an adult working for a group that sets out to capture or trap people such as yourself who engage in inappropriate communications with children online.”
He said: “The fact remains that there are strong indications that you believed you were communicating with a child throughout this time.
“It is rather ambivalent whether you accept that or not but it seems that you are still seeking to minimise your behaviour.”
Sheriff Wood added: “It is quite clear that you are not just a person who is valued in the workplace, you are also valued in the wider community and at home.
“Your fall from grace has been fairly dramatic to say the least.
“Society takes a very dim view of people who are potentially persuading children to do things they ought not to do and what they don’t want to do and potentially to do them damage.
“I am satisfied that the threshold for a custodial sentence has been reached but I am not satisfied that it is the only way to deal with this matter.”
‘Intense shame’
Solicitor Mark Harrower told the court: “He is extremely remorseful and he does feel intense shame.
“His behaviour has led to the end of his employment and the destruction of his social life.
“It is clear the pain that he has caused will continue into the future.”
Mr Harrower said: “Mr Kettles’ local church has been a source of great comfort for him in recent times.
“He receives no judgement from the people at his church.”
Mr Harrower said his client should not be jailed because he is a “low risk” of reoffending and “no children were involved in this matter, thankfully”.
Dancer
A log of messages between Kettles and Ruby ran to nearly 30 pages.
They included explicit question from him about periods and male and female genitals.
At one point, he tried to encourage Ruby to get her schoolfriends involved in the chat.
The trial was shown footage of a live-streamed video broadcast by Kettles on a dating site.
He is seen dancing topless and singing a version of the Kaiser Chiefs’ song Ruby.
During the livestreamed sting, great-grandfather Kettles appears to confess to his crime and pledges to close down his accounts.
In the video, which was not shown to the jury, Kettles makes an apparent confession.
When asked by one of the group why he thought it was acceptable to talk to underage children online, he said: “I don’t think its acceptable.”
“Then why did you do it?” asks the hunter.
“Boredom,” Kettles replies.
