An Avon and Somerset police officer who made sexual advances towards a mother and her children online will be sentenced today.

Adam Leighton-Price was investigated after the woman reported the incident to the NSPCC and he pleaded guilty at Gloucester Crown Court last month. 

He also admitted to possessing three extreme pornographic images of a person having sex with an animal.

Leighton-Price, 45 and of North Somerset, chose not to attend his misconduct hearing at the police HQ in Portishead last week because he did not believe he would get a 'fair and just' hearing.

He was found guilty of gross misconduct and dismissed from the force.

Solicitor for the force Shahzad Hamid said: “On November 18, 2017, PC Leighton-Price was investigated for offences of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence.

“These allegations arise as a result of PC Leighton-Price meeting a female online on Plenty of Fish.

“This conversation moved to another social media platform called Kik where it quickly turned sexually explicit, with PC Leighton-Prive making sexually suggestive comments and requests to the female and her children.”

“A search was carried out and computer items were seized. An examination of items revealed he had possession of extreme pornography.”

Leighton-Price appeared before Gloucester Crown Court on January 7 and pleaded guilty to one count of arranging or facilitating a child sex offence, involving a child under the age of 13, and three counts of possessing extreme pornographic images. These images depicted sexual acts involving animals.

Mr Hamid said the actions risked undermining public confidence in the police.

Leighton-Price emailed Mr Hamid ahead of the hearing to say he had read the allegations and accepted them. He said he would not be attending as he would not be offering any defence or mitigation.

He wrote: “I took the conscious decision not to argue the matter because I do not believe I would receive a fair and just hearing.”

The Police Federation chose not to represent him.

Chief constable Andy Marsh said: “The convictions against PC Leighton-Price are serious and are completely incompatible with any role as a serving police officer.

“That an officer can behave in such a way causes me great concern.

“PC Leighton-Price will be dismissed without notice and his name will be added to the barred register to ensure he plays no role at any point in policing.”

An NSPCC spokeswoman in the South West of England said: “Leighton-Price held a position of trust in the community, but allowed his sexual interest in children fuel the degrading crimes he committed.

“Everyone has a duty of care to protect children in society and this case highlights the importance of speaking out if there is a concern about the welfare of a child.”