'I love that you're only 14': Married driving instructor, 65, is jailed for trying to meet up with a 14-year-old girl – after telling her 'a daddy wants to have fun and teach you all about sex'
- Creepy driving instructor Tony Keith Whale was jailed for two-and-a-half years
- The 65-year-old tried to meet a 14-year-old girl after sending sexual material
- He met her on a sugar daddy website and was unaware he was chatting to police
A Sydney driving instructor tried to meet up with a 14-year-old girl after sending her sexually explicit material from an account titled 'Naughty Girls Needed'.
Tony Keith Whale, 65, was on Thursday jailed for two-and-a-half years over the communications in the weeks before his arrest in July 2018.
'A daddy wants to have fun with you so much ... teach you all about sex,' the then-married father sent on one occasion.
'Well, you're only 14 ... but I absolutely love that you are,' he said another time.
Creepy driving instructor Tony Keith Whale (pictured) has been jailed for two-and-a-half years
Unaware he was actually messaging a police officer, the then-63-year-old arranged to meet the girl and was arrested in his car in Westmead outside what he'd been told was the 14-year-old girl's family home.
Whale told police he only wanted to kiss 'Paige' before pleading his innocence at trial.
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But the jury found him guilty on the charge of using a carriage service to procure a child for sexual activity and must have rejected Whale's claims the chat was mere 'fantasy talk,' Judge Ross Letherbarrow said on Thursday in Sydney's Downing Centre District Court.
After meeting 'Paige' on a sugar daddy website, Whale moved the conversation to message platform Kik and began sending sexually explicit requests and instructions from the account 'Naughty Girls Needed'.
The 65-year-old tried to meet up with a 14-year-old girl after sending sexually explicit material
He raised and persisted with the idea of an in-person meeting after school, during school holidays or 'if your mum is at work one day,' Judge Letherbarrow said.
Whale's wife separated from him after his arrest and he spent time in shared accommodation in the lead up to Thursday's sentencing but he still has some family support, the judge said.
Judge Letherbarrow said jail was the only appropriate sentence for the crime and sending a message to the community was 'of the utmost importance'.
But he said Whale was unlikely to re-offend and had good prospects of rehabilitation, despite the continued denials.
Whale, who was credited for 27 days on remand, will be eligible for parole in March 2021.
Whale met the girl on a sugar daddy website and was unaware he was chatting to police
