Widnes Man Jailed for 10 Years After Attempting to Meet Undercover Officer Posing as 12-Year-Old

Published by Robert L Senior Reporter on Sunday 23rd March 2025, at 09:00hrs

Ciaran Clark, 46, of Ross Street, Widnes, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to attempting to meet a supposed 12-year-old for sexual purposes.

Clark was apprehended by Cheshire Constabulary’s Online Child Abuse Investigation Team (OCAIT) after engaging in online communications with an undercover officer posing as a minor.

Clark appeared at Chester Crown Court on March 17th, where he admitted to arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence, specifically rape/assault by penetration of a child under 13, and being an adult attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child.

The investigation began when OCAIT officers detected Clark’s suspicious online activity. He had been communicating with what he believed to be a 12-year-old child in an online chatroom.

Unbeknownst to him, he was interacting with an undercover officer. Detectives acted swiftly, arresting Clark on December 31st, 2024.

Demonstrating their commitment to protecting children, officers remained on duty through New Year’s Day to ensure Clark was charged and remanded into custody.

Detective Constable Faye Taylor of Cheshire Constabulary’s OCAIT team expressed the severity of Clark’s actions, stating,

“Clark was unaware he was sending his warped messaging to an undercover officer.

He’d even booked a hotel room in anticipation of meeting the child. This is what makes us so determined to catch these people and stay on duty to make sure they are remanded into custody. Even though he was talking to an adult, he was unaware, and the intent was there – his messages were despicable.”

DC Taylor further emphasized the team’s dedication, saying,

“As a team we are driven to stop people like Clark in their tracks and we will do all we possibly can to protect children at risk from these predatory paedophiles.”

In addition to the 10-year prison sentence, Clark has been ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life and has been issued a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.