'˜Sordid and disgusting' man who plied teenage girl with alcohol at Portsmouth hotel and sexually exploited her has been jailedÂ

A '˜sordid' and 'disgusting' man who lured a teenage girl at a Portsmouth hotel, plied her with alcohol and sexually exploited her has been jailed.Â

Ricardo Dias-Cyrino, 56, of Loxley Road, Berkhamsted, was given a 10 year sentence at Luton Crown Court yesterday for sexually abusing three teenage girls. 

He met his first victim, a 16-year-old girl, via an instant messaging app called KIK in mid-2017 and arranged to meet her at a hotel in Portsmouth.

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He plied her with alcohol before engaging in sexual activity with her and taking indecent photographs of her.

During a period of continued grooming and abuse lasting almost a year, Dias-Cyrino gifted the victim more than £1,000 via her PayPal account.

An NSPCC spokesperson for the East of England said: '˜Child sexual exploitation is never a victim's fault and this disturbing case highlights just how easy it is for predators to groom and exploit vulnerable victims on social media.

'˜It is vital that young people are able to spot the signs they are being abused '“ and that they know where to turn for help.

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'˜The NSPCC is calling on the Government to force social media companies to act now to protect children from grooming and face legal consequences where they fail to do so.'

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Child sexual exploitation is a type of sexual abuse when children in exploitative situations and relationships receive something such as gifts, money or affection as a result of performing sexual activities or others performing sexual activities on them.

The court heard that carpenter Dias-Cyrino used his skills to build a wooden box that he hid in his van and filled with sex toys and clothing.

In October 2017, he made contact with his second victim '“ also a 16-year-old girl '“ again via the KIK app.

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He encouraged her to send sexual photographs to him, which she did, but they never meet.

In January 2018, he began grooming his third victim '“ another 16 year old girl '“ using the KIK app once again.

He pressurised her to send photographs of herself to him and gifted her £70 and underwear, but they never met in person.

Dias-Cyrino used two profiles online, one of which he used to pose as a teenager called Katie who told the victims how nice Dias-Cyrino was and tried to convince them to meet with him.

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In March 2018, Dias-Cyrino was arrested after being caught attempting to meet up with what he believed to be four separate 13-year-old girls.

These were in fact fake profiles set up by a paedophile hunter group and a law enforcement officer.

Dias-Cyrino had sent them sexually explicit messages and asked for photographs.

He pleaded guilty to:

'¢ Two counts of child sexual exploitation '¢ Two counts of attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming '¢ Three counts of attempting to sexually communicate with a child '¢ One count of attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity '¢ One count of distributing indecent images of a child '¢ Three counts of making indecent images of a child

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Judge Michael Kay QC branded Dias-Cyrino's behaviour as '˜sordid, disgusting and in some respects extraordinary', referring to his pre-meditated construction of the wooden box.

He was sentenced to a total of six years in prison and will serve an extended four years on licence after the judge considered him a '˜significant risk' to the public.

Dias-Cyrino's name will be on the sex offenders' register for life and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order was also granted. One of the terms of the order is that he must use his real name in any interactions online. His phone, laptop and the wooden box have also been forfeited.

The investigation was led by the Constabulary's Child Online Safeguarding Team (COST).

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Detective Sergeant Mike Birch said: '˜Dias-Cyrino's victims have been incredibly brave in speaking to us about what happened to them and I want to commend their strength in what has been an extremely disturbing and depraved case to investigate.

'˜They were willing to speak to police as they do not want Dias-Cyrino to commit further crimes against anyone else.

'˜We hope this result can provide them with closure and a sense of peace, so they can move forward and try to rebuild their lives after seeing their abuser brought to justice.'