Burnley man jailed for sexual communication with girl he thought was 14

Tuesday, May 5, 2026

A man from Burnley has been jailed for sending sexual messages to someone he thought was a teenage girl.

John Crossley, 44, of Leyland Road, Burnley was sentenced at Preston Crown Court last week (Monday 27th April).

Crossley was arrested in November last year after sending sexually explicit messages to a girl he believed to be 14. The girl was in fact an adult member of a paedophile hunter group, who alerted police to Crossley’s actions.

In evidence presented to police, it was found Crossley had sent multiple sexually explicit messages in November 2025.

He was charged with a number of offences, pleading guilty to attempting to engage in sexual activity with a child and attempting to cause/incite a female child under 16 to engage in sexual activity. 

He was sentenced at Preston Crown Court to three years in prison. He was also issued with a 15-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Det Con Beth Turner, of Lancashire Police’s Internet Child Exploitation Team, said: “Crossley has a clear sexual interest in young girls and the custodial sentence handed down to him reflects the danger that he poses.

“We will continue to pursue and bring to justice, with the public’s help, those who seek to abuse youngsters for their own sexual gratification.”

John Crossley