A man who thought he was asking a 13-year-old girl he met online to have sex with him has been jailed after it turned out "she" was a police officer.
A judge has pledged that deep public concern at the abuse of chatrooms where adults prey on young people will result in more prison sentences.
Preston Crown Court was told that Barrie Spink was caught in a Lancashire police operation targeting Internet chatroom abusers.
Prosecutor Nicholas Courtney said that Operation Freelander was an "intelligence-led investigation into those using Internet chatrooms for sexual services".
An undercover police officer posed as a 13-year-old girl in the chatroom, the court was told.
It was made plain to Spink all along that he was talking to a girl aged 13, stressed Mr Courtney.
After several conversations with the "girl", he invited her to view his webcam where he committed a sex act on two occasions.
He then urged the girl to perform a sex act on herself.
He asked for the girl's mobile phone number but it was refused.
When arrested, Spink told police he had used chatrooms in the past to meet older girls and women for sex legitimately.
Spink, 26, of Fossdale Moss, Leyland, admitted attempting to engage in sexual activity which could be observed by a child.
He was sent to prison for 12 months, placed on the Sex Offenders' Register for 10 years and Judge Christopher Cornwall made a number of orders under the sexual offences prevention order which restricts his future use of a computer and unsupervised contact with children.
On his behalf, Michael Jones said Spink told police in a series of interviews: "I was very wrong. I deeply regret my actions."
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