Two child sex perverts are behind bars after their sickening attempts to exploit young girls online were exposed by volunteer paedophile hunters.

From his home in Morton, Carlisle, Justin Bell, 49, made repeated attempts to get girls as young as 13 and 14 to take part in sordid internet sex activity during the last week in March. He admitted four offences.

Also in court was 23-year-old Michael Chapman, from Troutbeck, near Penrith. Already a convicted sex offender, he admitted two fresh offences.

Both are likely to face lengthy jail sentences.

They were caught thanks to the efforts of two separate paedophile hunter groups whose members conduct online stings, gathering the evidence of internet grooming and child abuse and then passing it on to the police for prosecutions.

At Carlisle’s Rickergate magistrates’ court, Bell, of Bannisdale Way, Morton, admitted two counts of attempting to communicate sexually with a child; and two charges of attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.

Carl Gaffney, prosecuting, said a volunteer from the organisation Secret Whispers posed as a child in a series of online discussions with Bell, who believed he was talking to two girls: one aged 13, and one aged 14.

He sent them explicit sexual pictures of himself.

Bell did so despite the “girls” repeatedly telling him their age. “He carried on regardless,” said the prosecutor.

“The defendant has not embarked on a moment of madness in the wee small hours of the morning, or done something which is totally out of character. This was on a number of occasions with two different girls, who explicitly said to him ‘I am 13’ and ‘I am 14.’

“He carried on nevertheless.”

Bell sent graphic sexual images of himself, the court heard. Mr Gaffney said the defendant should be remanded in custody for his own protection, given that he had been publicly outed online on the social media website Facebook.

Referring to the moment Bell was confronted, Mr Gaffney added: “Thousands of people have seen it: it’s had 12,000 views, and 250 comments.

Rachel Dixon, for Bell, said: “He’s deeply ashamed and embarrassed by what he’s done. He can’t understand why he’s gone on to do this.”

There are no previous sexual offences on Bell’s record, she said. Magistrates said Bell will be remanded in custody - partly for his own protection - until he is sentenced by a judge at Carlisle Crown Court next month.

Chapman pleaded guilty to attempting to engage a child in sexual communication online on Saturday, April 7; and guilty to breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order which was imposed on him in November, 2017.

Mr Gaffney, outlining the case, said the court order was imposed on Chapman after he was convicted of various offences to do with child abuse images, including an offence of distributing such material.

The purpose of the court order was to prevent him from ever contacting children over the internet.

“What he has done has driven a coach and horses through that court order,” said Mr Gaffney.

Once again, said the prosecutor, it was a volunteer group which organised a sting which had exposed the defendant’s crimes. Fortunately, there was no child.

Chapman was unwittingly talking to volunteer paedophile hunter Sam Miller, from the Child Online Safety Team.

Mr Gaffney added: “The crown suggests that this is a case which goes considerably beyond your powers of sentencing.” Chapman will also be sentenced on May 17 at Carlisle Crown Court. He was also remanded in custody.