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A charity worker who arranged to meet girls under the age of 14 for sex in hotels has escaped jail so he can 'get help'.
Toni Stevens asked at least 39 underage girls for 'naughty pictures' and threesomes before he was caught by a vigilante paedophile hunting group who had set up the decoy accounts.
The group called police and Stevens was arrested at the scene on November 27, 2017.
During the sting Stevens said: 'I'm ashamed of myself' and hung his head while listening to chat logs from his conversations over WhatsApp.
The 32-year-old pleaded guilty to charges of engaging in sexual communication with a child and attempting to cause a child aged 13 to 15 to watch or look at an image of sexual activity at Plymouth Magistrates' Court last November.
He was handed a 12 months suspended for two years and ordered to attend 20 days of rehabilitation at Exeter Crown Court today.
His defence counsel Mr Michael Brown had asked the court to show mercy on Stevens who 'acknowledged he had a problems with his behaviour'.