British child sex tourist jailed

A British tourist has been jailed for 10 years in the US for trying to buy a nine-year-old girl for sex.

Robin Sprigg, 53, from Ellesmere, Shropshire, was sentenced in Arizona after pleading guilty last month.

Police trapped Sprigg after he met an undercover policeman, chose a child from a series of photos and paid £270 for sex with her.

Sprigg, who was placed on a sex register, bought a teddy bear in anticipation of meeting the girl.

Police in Arizona were tipped off by a man who rang them to say Sprigg had offered him cash in return for sex with a child.

We haggled on price for a minute or two and finally agreed at $500 for three hours with the nine-year-old girl Tom Bradbury Undercover policeman

Undercover officer Tom Bradbury met Sprigg in Mesa, Arizona, and offered him the nine-year-old.

Under the deal, Sprigg got to choose his favourite girl from a series of photographs. He also got three tablets of Viagra and condoms.

"We haggled on price for a minute or two and finally agreed at $500 for three hours with the nine-year-old girl he had chosen from the photos," Mr Bradbury wrote in a police report.

Police then watched as Sprigg visited a shop to buy a teddy bear and a pink dress before heading to the hotel where he expected to spend three hours with the girl.

When he arrived he was arrested. He was charged with attempted exploitation of a minor and attempted sexual conduct with a minor.

According to the police report, Sprigg was visiting the US for three weeks.

He had told a witness he had already had sexual encounters with girls in Las Vegas and San Francisco.

Police investigated the claim but found no evidence.