A SOUTHAMPTON paedophile came equipped with condoms to meet a 14-year-old boy for anal sex, a court heard.

Danut Stafie, 35, met the boy on the gay dating app, Grindr, and although he knew he was 14, carried on talking to him, moving the conversation over to Whatsapp.

Prosecuting, James Kellam told how Stafie, of Portsmouth Road, made arrangements to meet the boy, planning oral and anal sex.

But unknown to him, he was actually talking to a police officer working for the South East Reginal Organised Crime Unit.

Stafie was arrested after turning up to meet the boy in Woolston, equipped with condoms.

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A further search also uncovered two indecent images of children on his phone, one of which was classed as a category A image, the most severe type.

He was later charged with arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence and two counts of making an indecent photograph of a child.

Mr Kellam said: “The fact the victim doesn’t exist doesn’t affect the offence.”

But mitigating, Olivia Haggar said that the level of planning, in this case, was “not significant” and that they had only communicated for one day.

She added that he pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and is someone with a “romantic interest in men”.

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“[He] is someone who could be worked with in the community.”

But Judge, Gary Burrell KC said there had been “significant disparity in age” and that there was no room for a non-custodial sentence, “[There was] specific targeting of a vulnerable child. This is a very serious offence.

“It is the intention that counts. And his intention was to put his penis up a young boy’s anus.”

Stafie, who is originally from Romania, has one previous offence in his home country for a minor assault.

He was jailed for three years and made subject to an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.

He has also been ordered to register as a sex offender.

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