The man who groomed and harassed the girl was arrested

He took the 31-year-old female student to his home

Reported by: BBC Isle of Man:

A man who lured a schoolgirl to his home by promising her e-cigarettes and alcohol before indecently assaulting her has been sentenced to two years and 10 months in prison.

Thomas HallThe 31-year-old messaged the 15-year-old on Snapchat under a different name for a week before inviting her to his apartment to pick up the items on March 7.

Douglas Courthouse heard Hall locked the door after letting her in before attacking her.

Deemster Graeme Cook said the victim “must have been terrified” and would have been “traumatised” when he left the premises.

The court heard Hall only allowed the victim into his flat, even though the girl came with a friend who had been given e-cigarettes in the past.

He reported the attack to the police and was later arrested.

The court heard the 31-year-old man was granted bail on separate charges of possessing indecent images of children at the time of the attack after 57 images were found on devices he owned in January the previous year.

Although Hall initially denied meeting the girl, he later pleaded guilty to indecent assault on a child, gross indecency with a child, grooming and possessing indecent images of five people.

In a victim impact statement read to the court, the girl said she was now “extremely suspicious” of men over 30 and the attack meant she had to grow up faster than other men her age.

The court heard Hall had previous convictions for related offenses, which Deemster Cook said showed an “increase in aggressive behaviour”.

The Jailing Hall official said it wreaked “devastation” on the victim, who “did absolutely nothing wrong.”