A Fife man asked a “13-year-old girl” to bring her pyjamas and toothbrush for a house stay during sex chats.
However, Milos Vodicka did not realise he was actually talking to a paedophile hunter.
The 52-year-old was snared by a member of the group Justice for Kids after communicating indecently with them on WhatsApp between April and May last year.
Midway through a trial last month, he pled guilty to sending the sexual messages to the decoy.
Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court heard he later admitted breaching a bail order by contacting young children on various occasions – including when they were naked on a Fife beach – in the months before his trial.
Defence lawyer Dewar Spence said Vodicka is originally from the Czech Republic and language issues, perhaps, meant he had assumed as long as the parents were present he was not breaching the bail condition.
Vodicka appeared in the dock this week to be sentenced for both crimes.
Sexual chats
Procurator fiscal depute Jennifer Bairner said one of the paedophile hunters had set up a decoy account on adult dating site ‘Just Say Hi’ using the fictional name “Amber” and Vodicka made contact.
The conversation moved onto WhatsApp and the “girl” disclosed she was 13 but they continued to speak for more than a month on an almost daily basis, despite her repeating the age several times.
References were made by her to “being grounded,” attending school and playing in the playpark with friends.
Vodicka asked if she was interested in boys.
The fiscal depute said: “He repeatedly asked if she would give him a hug and kiss him and told her they would get into trouble if anyone saw them together.
“He said he would have to pretend to people she is his daughter if seen together.
“The accused also instigated many conversations about staying at his house and asked her to bring a toothbrush and pyjamas.”
Ms Bairner said they discussed going to his home and train times.
A not guilty plea was accepted to a charge Vodicka attempted to meet with the “child” at Inverkeithing railway station.
‘Wilfully blind’
Ms Bairner told the court Vodicka breached a bail condition not to contact children under the age of 16 – unless incidental – between June 9 and September 1.
The fiscal depute said Vodicka was present with an adult and their two young children on a number of occasions.
She said on one occasion they were at Aberdour Silversands beach for about two hours and Vodicka interacted with the children, answering their questions and picking shells.
Ms Bairner added: “At times the children were naked while running into the water on the beach”.
The mother of the children was later informed of him being on the Sex Offenders Register and police were contacted.
Vodicka was arrested on October 1.
The fiscal said upon being charged for the breach he claimed he had misunderstood what he had been told about contacting children.
Vodicka told police: “Nobody told me exactly about these children.
“I was thinking I cannot contact them on the street, park or internet.
“I am sorry for the misunderstanding.”
Prison term would be too brief
Sheriff James MacDonald told Vodicka both charges against him were serious and meet the custody threshold.
However, he stressed if he were to impose a custodial sentence it would be less than a year and a community payback order may be seen as “long lasting and more vigorous than the net effect of sending you to prison”.
The sheriff ordered Vodicka, of Kirkcaldy‘s Orkney Place, to carry out 225 hours of unpaid work and placed him under offender supervision for two years.
This will be supplemented by a conduct requirement meaning he must obtain prior approval from a supervising officer for the likes of deliberate contact with a child under 16 or gaining new employment.
Sheriff MacDonald also told Vodicka that he seemed “wilfully blind” as to the terms of his bail order and is only “narrowly avoiding being sent to prison”.
The court heard Vodicka had no previous analogous convictions.
He was placed on the Sex Offenders Register for two years.
