Liam l’Anson North, aged 29, was convicted by a jury of three online child sex offences and was subsequently sentenced to three years and four months in prison on Monday, July 24th, 2023, at Leeds Crown Court.
Liam l’Anson North believed he was communicating with a minor, but he was conversing with undercover personnel from the West Yorkshire Police.
The individual was convicted of charges related to attempting to communicate sexually with a minor and attempting to encourage a minor to participate in sexual activity.
The revelation of his conduct initially occurred in mid-2021 when an account, using a pseudonym created by Liam l’Anson North from Middleton in Rochdale, initiated interaction through social media with an account held by the West Yorkshire Police.
Mistakenly believing he was conversing with a 13-year-old girl, the man initiated a conversation with the account holder that rapidly turned explicit.
In June 2021, he was apprehended by law enforcement officials and on February 18, 2022, he was formally accused and summoned to appear before magistrates.
The Kirklees Online Investigation Team and the West Yorkshire Police Digital Forensics Unit conducted investigations in the case.
Collaborating, the teams discovered several messages from Liam l’Anson North’s devices despite his efforts to delete them and conceal his actions.
Personal computer James Hackman, a member of the Online Investigation Team, expressed his approval of the imprisonment of Liam l’Anson North and emphasised his belief that North presents a genuine danger to young children.
“During his conversations, he displayed a definite intention to engage in severe sexual offences against young children. Fortunately, the individual he believed he was conversing with was a police officer.”
He stated: “An essential aspect of this investigation involved the extensive collaboration between Kirklees officers and our expert colleagues at the Digital Forensics Unit, which allowed us to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the activities that Liam l’Anson North would have preferred to keep concealed.”
“This case serves as a clear reminder to individuals who believe they can conceal their actions when involved in child sexual offences that forensic experts possess exceptional abilities in recovering erased evidence from mobile devices and computer equipment.”
If you or anyone you know have been affected by the people highlighted in this article, then please report those individuals to the Police on 101 (999 if an emergency) or visit their online resources for further details of the options for reporting a crime. You can also make a report at Crimestoppers should you wish to be completely anonymous. There is help available on our support links page.