A MAN who groomed six teenage boys online before abusing them has been jailed for 15 years.
Two of Nicholas Geddes's victims were from Long Eaton while the other four boys were aged 14 or 15 and from Durham, Newcastle, Montrose and Gwent.
The case against Geddes, 24, began on June 10 last year when the parents of a 13-year-old Long Eaton boy called police to report that their son had been groomed online, taken to a hotel in the East Midlands and abused by Geddes.
Officers discovered that Geddes had been in contact with the boy via social media.
They identified him through his car registration details and arrested him the next day.
Geddes was convicted of two counts of sexual activity with a child, rape, meeting a child following sexual grooming and trafficking within the UK for sexual exploitation in relation to this victim.
Examinations of Geddes's phone revealed that he had been having explicit conversations with other teenage boys, which led police to identify a 15-year-old victim from Long Eaton and the other victims from outside the county.
In the case of the older Long Eaton boy, Geddes, of Coombe Park, Little Sutton, Ellesmere Port, had groomed him online and taken him to a local nature reserve and kissed him.
He was convicted of two counts of meetings a child following sexual grooming in relation to this victim, along with sexual activity with a child and causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.
Geddes was sentenced at Derby Crown Court today after he was found guilty, or pleaded guilty prior to his trial, to several counts including meeting a child following sexual grooming, sexual activity with a child, attempted rape, rape and trafficking within the UK for sexual exploitation.
Geddes was also placed on the sex offenders register.
DS Steve Shaw, of the child exploitation unit, said: "This sentence reflects the severity of Geddes' offending. Thankfully, cases such as this are rare but it does highlight the fact that it is not always girls who are victims of exploitation.
"It's not only the parents and guardians of girls who need to be aware of the problem. I would urge all parents to be alive to the risks posed by social media sites and to discuss these risks with their children.
"In this case, the boys were effectively groomed while they were in their own homes. While work is being done by the police and schools to educate parents and children, there is still more to be done to raise awareness.
"I would urge youngsters not to share any information online that they wouldn't feel happy sharing face-to-face."
For more information and advice about staying safe online, visit http://www.ceop.police.uk
