A MAN has been sentenced to 14 years for child sex offences, described by police as 'the worst that the team had ever seen'.
Geoffrey Rooney 45, of Moore Avenue, Bradford, England, admitted 10 offences at Bradford Crown Court on December 7, 2021.
They included arranging and facilitating the commission of a child sex offence and making and distributing hundreds of indecent images of children.
Rooney committed the offences while out of prison on licence after previous sex offences against a child, for which he was sentenced to 14 years in 2015, according to the BBC.
At Bradford Crown Court on Friday, he was sentenced to a 14-year extended jail sentence with an eight-year custodial term and six years on extended licence.
'Dangerous sexual predator'
"Rooney is a dangerous sexual predator who went to extreme lengths in order to try and conceal his activities and intentions to cause serious harm to children," said Detective Chief Inspector Andy Woodhead, Head of Safeguarding at Bradford Police.
"This case was very distressing and this type of abuse was the worst that the team had ever seen.
"The crimes he pleaded guilty to represent a high volume of images — many of the most serious kind.
"Through working with our partners, we were able to stop him from causing further harm to children.
"I welcome the lengthy sentence given today — there is no hiding place for offenders like Rooney who commit these abhorrent crimes.
"We treat all offences of this nature seriously and we will continue to do everything we can to safeguard children."
Out on licence
The latest offences took place between July and November 2021.
At the time, Rooney was on licence, having been released from prison earlier that year following his imprisonment in 2015 for child sex offences.
He also breached the terms of a sexual harm prevention order.
His arrest last November was the result of a joint police sting operation involving West Yorkshire Police and the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU).
According to ITV, Rooney believed he was communicating with fellow paedophiles online, and tried to arrange a meeting with one undercover officer to abuse what he thought was another paedophile's son.
He also sent officers videos of children being abused, with the victims ranging from a few days old to eight years old.
'Dangerous sexual predator'
Detective Inspector Andy Buckthorpe from the ROCU described Rooney as a 'dangerous offender'.
"We welcome the lengthy sentence of Rooney today and hope communities feel reassured that this dangerous sexual predator is now behind bars,” said DI Buckthorpe.
"Here at the North West ROCU we have specialist officers who work tirelessly in partnership with other UK forces, agencies and CEOP (the Child Exploitation Online Protection Centre) to protect children from sexual exploitation and dangerous offenders such as Rooney.
"Law enforcement operates across the internet and we will use every tactic and technological advancement available to ensure people cannot and do not get away with the terrible crimes they have committed."
See More: Bradford, West Yorkshire Police
