A children's entertainer who is from Walsall committed a series of internet sex offences against young boys he met through his work at holiday parks, a court has heard.

Jason Gaunt, 22, was arrested after Surrey Police's paedophile online investigation team probed a series of online-related offences involving children under the age of 16.

He pleaded guilty to 19 offences involving three boys between the ages of 11 and 14 when he appeared at Guildford Crown Court in December and returned for sentencing on Wednesday.

But the judge said he was not prepared to pass sentence until a psychological assessment of the defendant had taken place.

Prosecutor Ruby Selva said Gaunt met the first boy while he was working at Kessingland Park Resort in Lowestoft, Suffolk, between March 2007 and November 2008.

She said there was no evidence that any offence was committed by Gaunt when with him, but during conversations on the internet afterwards he encouraged the boy to get a web camera so he could watch him masturbate.

The court heard the boy's mother found out about their contact and reported it to police who were able to trace the defendant.
Officers then set up an email account posing as the boy before they arrested him in February last year.

Two laptops were seized from his home and analysed, which led to the discovery of the offences concerning the two other boys.

Ms Selva said that with the second boy there was again no evidence of physical contact between him and Gaunt.

He asked the 11-year-old boy to strip in front of his webcam, and when the boy admitted he had had a crush on him when he met him at the holiday camp, replied: "You should have told me, I would have f***** you then."

A video found on Gaunt's laptop related to the third boy, Ms Selva said. She said the footage showed the 14-year-old and Gaunt indulging in sexual activity with their backs together in the defendant's chalet at Seawick Holiday Park in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, where he worked from February 2009 to November 2009.

Gaunt has admitted five counts of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, two counts of attempting to engage in sexual activity in the presence of a child, three counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and one count of engaging in sexual activity with a child.

Gaunt also pleaded guilty to one count of sexual activity with a child, six counts of making and possessing indecent images of a child, and one count of attempting to distribute an indecent photo of a child.

During mitigation Kim Jenkins, for the defence, said that Gaunt had experienced a difficult childhood and had been savaged by a dog at the age of 10, leaving him seriously scarred.

He had become increasingly isolated and withdrawn while at secondary school and was bullied.