‘vile’ | 

Irishman who flew to London to abuse child (6) is jailed after police sting

He was found in possession of items including Viagra and condoms upon his arrest.

Today at 17:18

An Irishman who flew to London hoping to meet a six-year-old girl to abuse has been jailed for nearly seven years.

Adrian O’Reilly, 49, was caught in a police sting operation after the child turned out to be an undercover detective.

O’Reilly came to police attention in January 2023 when he exchanged ‘vile’ messages with an undercover officer posing as a young girl, Snaresbrook Crown Court heard.

He expressed his desire to to meet and abuse the young girl and flew to London from Dublin airport on 29 March last year.

O’Reilly arranged to meet up with the youngster in Stratford – but to his horror he was met by a team of Met officers.

He was found in possession of items including Viagra and condoms upon his arrest.

O’Reilly, of Dublin, admitted arranging or facilitating the commission of a child offence.

He was jailed for six years and nine months and handed an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.

Detective Constable Ed Hickford, who was part of the team who caught O’Reilly, said:

‘Our pursuit of those who engage in illegal sexual activity with children is relentless and we will use a range of tactics to identify and arrest those responsible.

‘In this case, O’Reilly thought he was communicating with a person who was offering access to a young girl. His messages were vile and he endorsed these by getting on a plane and flying to London with the intention to carry out this abuse.

‘However, he was greeted by my team who arrested him and compiled a wealth of evidence which left him with no choice but to plead guilty.’