Former bank manager arranged to meet decoy mum to rape 12-year-old daughter

A high-risk sex offender who was caught in an undercover police operation arranging to meet a 12-year-old girl he planned to rape and sexually assault has been given a life sentence.

Former bank manager Paul Chalmers arranged to meet a woman he believed was called Megan to gain access to a child he thought was her daughter, to abuse her.

Chalmers, 69, travelled from Glasgow to Edinburgh on January 25 last year, intent on giving the woman £250 as previously agreed, after booking a hotel room in the capital city to carry out the child rape.

But Chalmers, who has a record for sexual offending, was actually dealing with women police officers who were acting as decoys.

A judge at the High Court in Edinburgh told him that he posed a high risk of sexual offending and a high risk of sexual violence.

Lord Mulholland said that had the child and mother been real as opposed to undercover police officers, Chalmers would have engaged in the rape and sexual assault of a girl.

The judge imposed an Order for Lifelong Restriction on the sex offender and ordered that he must serve at least three years and nine months in jail as part of the punishment.

Chalmers’ criminal record includes offences of possessing indecent images of children and causing a child to view sexual images.

Lord Mulholland pointed out that he was on licence for sexual offences at the time he committed the present crimes.

Chalmers earlier admitted attempting to conspire with undercover police officers, who he believed were an adult woman called Megan, to commit rape and sexual assault in January last year.

Chalmers contacted a profile named ‘Megan Fraser’, who was supposedly the 35-year-old mother of a 12-year-old girl. He said he was from Glasgow and was employed in banking and stocktaking.

He said the girl was a “lovely age” and asked if she had experience with a man. He claimed that he would pay the woman £250 to have sexual contact with her daughter.

Advocate depute Caroline MacBride said that he made arrangements with her to meet at a Travelodge hotel in central Edinburgh and booked a room. He was arrested close to the main door of the hotel.

He also admitted that at a flat in Glasgow, and elsewhere on January 9 last year, he sent sexual messages via the Chatiw social media app to a person he believed was an underage girl, but was in fact an adult policewoman.

Defence solicitor advocate Ann Ogg told the court that an expert report obtained by the defence assessed Chalmers as being at high risk of reoffending and a high risk of sexual violence.

She asked the court to take into account that there has been no contact sexual offending by Chalmers to date and that he has a stable background.

She said: “He does express remorse for offences and has indicated he does not intend to reoffend.”