'Girl' groomed by film producer

A film producer was caught in a newspaper sting after trying to groom a young girl for sex, a court has heard.

David Shaw, 41, admitted sending sexually explicit internet messages to a girl he believed was 12-years-old.

But he denied trying to meet a child after sexual grooming on 21 January, 2005 at an east London park.

London's Guildhall Crown Court heard that Mr Shaw, of Mare Street, Hackney, east London, had been netted as part of a set-up by the News of the World.

Mr Shaw, calling himself Mediamonkeys, met the youngster in a chatroom called "No Adults Please" in June 2004.

Undercover reporter

Prosecutor Hanna Llewellyn-Waters told Middlesex Guildhall Crown Court that in a series of increasingly graphic messages Mr Shaw asked "Mags" if she was "fully developed", if she had a boyfriend and if she liked boys her own age.

"He said she should call him David, but when they were in bed together she should call him 'Dad' as it would be sexy to him."

Eventually they agreed to meet in West Ham Park, east London, on January 21, 2005 but on arriving what he thought was going to be his schoolgirl lover turned out to be an undercover reporter and waiting police.

Shaw was arrested at the park. Police later seized his computer and laptop.

Ms Llewellyn-Waters told the court that 27 indecent images of children were found on them and Shaw was convicted of possessing indecent images at an earlier trial.

The trial continues.