A 22-YEAR-OLD man sent sexual messages to a police officer posing as a 12-year-old girl and a 14-year-old boy, Jedburgh Sheriff Court has been told.

Thomas Lockey pleaded guilty to the offences which happened in June last year and February this year at a house in Westside, Denholm.

The court heard that Lockey had used the social media messaging platform Kik to make contact with what he thought were youngsters.

But he was actually communicating with an undercover online operative from Police Scotland.

He sent the 12-year-old girl explicit photos and asked her for “any naughty pics?”

Lockey asked the boy if he was feeling horny and asked him if he had ever “had fun with guys”.

Lockey, who now lives at Hale near Manchester, had sentence deferred until August 12 for the production of a Criminal Justice Social Work Report and a Restriction of Liberty Order assessment.

He was also made subject to the notification requirements of the Sexual Offences Act.