Antony Bell, 53, thought he was chatting via social media to a 13-year-old girl and her friends and showed them his face, said Olivia Fraser, prosecuting.
In reality, he was talking to an undercover police officer and Bell was arrested.
Bell, of Pasture Court, Sherburn-in-Elmet, pleaded guilty to attempted sexual communication with a child and attempting to get a 13-year-old girl to watch an image of sexual activity.
His solicitor advocate Kevin Blount said he was remorseful, had never been in trouble with the law before and had no convictions since the offences in April last year.
Judge Geoffrey Marson KC gave Bell an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months on condition he does 30 days’ rehabilitative activities and 100 hours’ unpaid work, and made him subject to a 10-year sexual harm prevention order restricting his access to children and the internet and enabling police to monitor him. He will also be on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years.
“As far as you knew, you were actually communicating with a 13-year-old girl; happily you were not,” the judge told Bell.
“It is ridiculous, but not uncommon for people in your situation to deny a sexual interest in children. There can be no other sensible explanation for doing something like that.”
Ms Fraser said the undercover detective set up a fake profile of a schoolgirl on ChatIW, a chat website that doesn’t require users to register or verify their age.
Bell contacted the profile and said he was 50 years old. The detective replied that “she” was 13 years old.
Bell sent “her” sexual messages and when the detective suggested the chat move to SnapChat he agreed.
A few days later, during another chat, the “girl” said that she was with two friends.
Bell said he would perform a sexual act “daring them to watch him”, said Ms Fraser.
He also tried to get them to show him their faces and although the “girl” declined, he showed a screen video of himself.
Police later identified from the picture that he was in a storeroom at his place of work when he sent it. He did not send any sexual images.
After he was arrested, his employer held an investigation. Bell claimed he had no idea why the police wanted to speak to him and the chat had only involved “innuendo” and had not been sexual.
Mr Blount said at the time of his offences, Bell had been having personal difficulties. Since the incident, Bell had been made redundant and was looking for work.
Bell had not performed any sexual act or shown any sexual act to the “girl”, the court heard.
