A 34-year-old man has been jailed after grooming and exploiting a vulnerable teenage girl through the social media app Snapchat before travelling to Dorset to meet her.
Luke Morgan Leon Burton, from Carterton in Oxfordshire, was sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court on Monday after admitting a catalogue of sexual offences involving children. The court heard how Burton was discovered by officers from Dorset Police inside a vehicle with the teenage victim in Weymouth during April 2025 after driving across counties to meet her.
Following the discovery, detectives seized Burton’s electronic devices and uncovered extensive evidence of predatory behaviour. Investigators found Snapchat messages arranging meetings with the victim, alongside communications with other underage girls and a cache of indecent images.
Burton pleaded guilty to five counts of possessing indecent images, two counts of causing a child to engage in sexual activity, as well as offences of causing a child to watch a sexual act, sexual communication with a child and attempted sexual communication with a child.
Judgees sentenced him to six years and four months behind bars. He was also placed indefinitely on the Sex Offenders Register, handed a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and made subject to a five-year restraining order protecting his victim.
Detective Sergeant Al Marks said Burton “posed a serious risk” to teenage girls and knowingly targeted children despite being fully aware of their ages.
The case has once again highlighted growing concerns surrounding online grooming and the exploitation of children through encrypted and disappearing-message apps such as Snapchat, Instagram and Discord. Police forces across Dorset and the wider south west have repeatedly warned parents that predators are increasingly using social media platforms to contact vulnerable young people before coercing them into sharing images or arranging meetings.
Dorset has seen a number of disturbing online paedophile cases in recent years.
In 2023, a Bournemouth man was jailed after using social media and gaming platforms to groom multiple children before attempting to arrange sexual encounters. Detectives uncovered indecent images and extensive online conversations with minors during searches of his devices.
A separate case in Poole involved a man convicted after posing as a teenager online to manipulate young girls into sending explicit images. Investigators said the offender had spent months building trust with victims before exploiting them.
In another major investigation, officers from Dorset Police’s Internet Child Abuse Investigation Team worked alongside the National Crime Agency to identify individuals sharing indecent images of children through encrypted messaging networks. Several men across Dorset were arrested and later convicted following dawn raids targeting online child abuse suspects.
Police and safeguarding organisations continue to urge parents to monitor children’s online activity, discuss the dangers of social media grooming and ensure privacy settings are enabled on apps commonly used by teenagers.
Experts warn that offenders often exploit secrecy, vulnerability and emotional manipulation, with many victims unaware they are being groomed until serious abuse has already occurred.
Anyone concerned about online exploitation or suspicious behaviour involving children is urged to contact Dorset Police or report concerns anonymously through the NSPCC and CEOP safeguarding services.
