Darren Snow Secures Not Guilty Verdict in Complex ChatIB Case Involving Underage Impersonation

In yet another fantastic result, Darren Snow, instructed by I A Law, secured a not guilty verdict for his client at Birmingham Crown Court. Darren was instructed only days before the trial to defend this case of alleged sexual communication with a 13-year-old girl.

The case was part of an undercover operation by West Midlands Police where specialist police officers had infiltrated the online free chat forum ChatIB, playing the part of underage girls engaging in sexual chat. The contact and its sexual nature were not disputed. The officer had identified himself as a 13-year-old girl. Darren’s client had maintained from his police interview to trial that he believed that he was engaging in fantasy chat with an adult – something he had often done on the forum.

In cross examination Darren took the officer overseeing the investigation through the ChatIB system – demonstrating that it made clear it was a site for over 18s and anyone using it had to agree a declaration that they were over 18 before being able to access the site and chat with other users. The officer also accepted that the choice of name on the site by Darren’s client had made it blindingly obvious he was on the site to talk about sex. The jury were unanimous with their verdict.

Darren Snow has a growing reputation for his work defending in complex sexual offence cases as leading and junior counsel, including in prosecutions led by KCs.