A WOMAN has admitted sending sexual messages to an autistic teenager she met in a group for vulnerable children.
Sarah Magee, 31, met the 13-year-old girl through an online autism support group and had been asked to befriend her by the girl’s mother.
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Magee, of Motherwell, Lanarkshire, spoke to her on social media but the girl’s mother became concerned at the amount of time she was spending online.
She discovered Magee had been messaging her away from the support group’s main page and contacted her on Facetime, WhatsApp and Snapchat.
The mum was left horrified when she found messages where Magee said she ‘loved her’ and promised to marry her.
Further messages saw mum-of-one Magee offering to take the girl out when she turned 18 and telling her to ‘make some cute content’, before adding ‘God damn, you’re so cute’.
She also asked if she could ‘lick’ the girl, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, and sent her a photo of her tongue.
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The girl later told police she thought this was a ‘sexual comment’ and thought it felt ‘weird’.
A member of the support group reported Magee and she was arrested.
Shamed Magee, now of Somerset, appeared at Hamilton Sheriff Court and admitted sending a sexual written communication to the girl between October 2020 and January 2021.
‘FELT WEIRD’
The charge also stated she uttered sexual remarks towards the girl and about the girl, repeatedly state she loved the girl, wanted to be in a relationship with her and attempted to communicate indecently with her which was all said to have been done to obtain sexual gratification.
An allegation Magee had repeatedly sent her explicit photos was dropped by prosecutors.
Depute fiscal Claire Rowan said: “The complainer’s mother and the accused met through the online support group with the purpose of supporting those with autism and promoting autism awareness and she added the accused to a new group on Instagram.
“She told the accused her daughter had some mental health issues and asked if her daughter was online could the accused check in on her.
“The mother later noted her daughter spending an increased amount of time online with the accused and her daughter confessed she had a crush on the accused.
“She then spoke to the accused and thought the matter had been dealt with but became aware that the accused had been messaging her daughter outside of the group’s monitored chats.
SEXUAL MESSAGES
“When she checked her daughter’s phone she noted communications that were suggestive and sexual in nature which included the accused telling the girl that she loved her and would marry her once she turned 18.”
The prosecutor added: “Another witness later contacted her local police office and reported her concerns and the girl’s phone was later seized.
“The girl told police that chats had become sexualised after she spoke to the accused on Instagram.”
‘ASHAMED’
Manus Tolland, defending, said: “This is a matter which started with good intentions in the support group with the young girl stating she was depressed while being bullied and telling my client she wanted to end her life.
“But my client is quite properly ashamed of herself for what then happened.”
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Sheriff Moira MacKenzie deferred sentence on Magee until next month for reports and continued bail.
A decision whether to place her on the sex offenders’ register will be made at the sentencing hearing.
