An Isle of Wight man has been sentenced after he ‘fell into a trap’ set by two paedophile hunters and attempted to meet two teenage girls following 150 pages of online messages and graphic sexual communications.

Vincent Vella, of Church Road, Wootton, appeared before the Isle of Wight Crown Court today (Tuesday, October 17) after pleading guilty to two counts of attempting to meet a girl under the age of 16 following grooming.

Simon Foster, prosecuting, said two paedophile hunters created online profiles of 13 and 14-year-old girls on Mingle2, a chat app for singles, where Vella had a profile which read that he ‘was looking for a younger girl who he could get pregnant and eventually marry’.

The messages between Vella and who he believed to be teenage girls started with general ‘chit-chat’, said Mr Foster, but eventually moved to suggestions of going camping together to have ‘lots of sex’.

Despite messages disclosing their age, Vella discussed the teenagers losing their virginity and graphic details about vaginal, anal and oral sex, the prosecution said.

Mr Foster told the court Vella’s messages were exchanged between November 12–27 last year, with the 30-year-old making plans to meet them on November 26.

Vella was arrested the following day, when the paedophile hunters arrived at his doorstep, with police arriving a short time later.

Holly Fagan, defending, said her client organised to meet the teenagers, but never turned up, describing his exchanges with the paedophile hunters as an ‘attempted offence rather than the offence itself’.

Ms Fagen told the court probation suggested Vella might have undiagnosed autism, and he is now on the waiting list to be tested.

Vella is ‘very immature for a 30-year-old man’, said Ms Fagen.

Ms Fagen said Vella found it difficult to speak to women he liked, so decided to try to start an online relationship, but “he knew he should not have been speaking to a child like that."

Vella was “shaken up about being apprehended by the vigilante paedophile hunters.”

Judge David Melville said: “They [paedophile hunters] were put there to try to catch people like you and you fell into the trap.”

“You encouraged her not to tell her mother, so you could have your wicked ways with her in safety.”

Judge Melville handed Vella a two-year community order, to include 60 rehabilitation days and 120 hours of unpaid work and made him subject to a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.