A dangerous Dundee predator sent a teen lewd Snapchat messages, including a video of him mimicking having sex with her.
38-year-old Ben Johnston flooded his 15-year-old victim’s phone with sick messages and snaps, including of his naked genitals.
His course of offending took place just two months before a jury convicted him of sexually assaulting two females with the intention of raping them while prowling around Dundee.
As he was led out the dock in handcuffs, Johnston apologised to the girl’s father who was in the public gallery.
He responded: “Enjoy your hell – he ruined my daughter’s life.”
Snapchat sleaze
Prosecutor Duncan MacKenzie told Dundee Sheriff Court Johnston asked for his victim’s Snapchat details while they were in a lift in a block of flats in Dundee on November 14 last year.
He began sending her messages from his account BennyBoyDFC.
Johnston – on bail for the other serious sexual offences – asked for a photo.
She began to feel uncomfortable when he asked where she was and offered to drive her.
Johnston went on to send a photograph of his erect penis and more explicit images two days later.
He also sent her a video of himself leaning over a sofa mimicking having sex with the caption: “I can’t wait to bend you over.”
Days later, she was with a relative when Johnston sent a photograph of his genitals covered by a penis pump.
The girl told her father and police were contacted.
No realistic alternative to jail
Johnston pled guilty to coercing a child into seeing sexual images and video from his Tulloch Court home on various occasions between November 14 and 22 last year.
He admitted this was for sexual gratification or to humiliate, distress or alarm the teenager.
His solicitor David Duncan said: “There was a lengthy report prepared for the last case which assessed both Mr Johnston’s personal difficulties but also expressed concerns about his behaviour and decision-making.
“The sentencing sheriff on the last occasion made it clear that he felt there was an unhealthy preoccupation within Mr Johnston and that is obviously always going to be a concern for the court.
“I recognise that this offending crosses the custody threshold. There are no realistic alternatives.
“The issues of risk, public protection and punishment have been fairly comprehensively addressed in the existing sentence.”
Unhealthy preoccupation
Sheriff Gregor Murray jailed Johnston for 10 months, to be served consecutively to his ongoing sentence.
He made a 10-year non-harassment order to protect Johnston’s victim and placed him on the sex offenders register for a decade.
The sheriff said: “Your lawyer has just advised me that the last sheriff thought there was an unhealthy preoccupation – I agree with that assessment.
“This was a serious offence. It followed two far more serious offences.
“It’s your seventh conviction in relation to events in 2024.
“There could be no question of anything other than custody in your case.”
Prior attacks
In January, Johnston was convicted of sexually assaulting two females with the intention of raping them by jurors at Dundee Sheriff Court.
Johnston sat at an unofficial taxi rank with the word taxi etched into dirt on his car when he gave a drunk woman a lift home before abusing her.
Police who came to discuss the incident found him in possession of a sex toy.
Months later, he abused a schoolgirl after driving her around Dundee.
For those offences, he was sentenced to four years in jail, two more extended and will spend the rest of his life on the sex offenders register.
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