Blackpool paedophile told by judge he's in 'Last Chance Saloon' after flouting Facebook, TikTok & WhatsApp ban

A judge has warned a convicted paedophile he is in “the Last Chance Saloon” after breaching court orders restricting his use of the internet.

Jonathon Ashbrook secretly accessed Facebook, TikTok, WhatsApp and SnapChat when he was barred from using social media following a conviction two years ago.

The 36-year-old, from Blackpool, pleaded guilty to breaking the conditions of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and also rules on notifying police about his online activity.

When he appeared before Preston Crown Court this week for sentence he was told by Judge Paul Hodgkinson: “You are literally in the Last Chance Saloon. If I see you again you will go to prison.”

Ashbrook was spared jail in May 2024 when he admitted attempting to engage in sexual communication with a 13-year-old girl.

This week the court heard that a police officer conducting enquiries about an unrelated incident asked him to provide identification details and when he asked to inspect his mobile phone Ashbrook told him he wasn’t sure if there was anything “of concern” on the device.

When the phone was examined police discovered activity on a pornography website which breached the SHPO. They also found two usernames on Facebook and TikTok which had not been notified to police.

The prosecution said there was no evidence of anything untoward involving those usernames. But a check of WhatsApp proved messages had been sent but had then been deleted. There had also been a message sent on SnapChat which couldn’t be traced.

Ashbrook, of Grasmere Road, Blackpool, was said to have 21 previous offences on his criminal record including the conviction two years ago for trying to have sexual conversations with the girl who was really a police officer pretending to be a 13-year-old.

Barrister Daniel Dewhurst, defending, said the court had two stark choices – to either send him straight to prison where he would probably serve only a short time, or give him a suspended sentence which would mean he would get support from the probation service for a longer time to help get his life back on track.

He said Ashbrook, who lives alone, had admitted his guilt from the outset, although he hadn’t been able to say how the social media apps had come to be on his phone.

The conviction two years ago had not been a case of him contacting a real person, the supposed 13-year-old had been a decoy set up to catch sexual predators. So no harm had been caused.

But he added: “He fails to acknowledge the impact of using platforms and the reason why he is subject to notification.”

Judge Hodgkinson told Ashbrook that Sexual Harm Prevention Orders and notification orders were there “to protect the public from people like you who show an interest in children.”

He said his conviction in 2024 was for attempting to have sexual conversations with a child “albeit someone pretending to be a child”.

“You weren’t to know that. It shows you have an enduring sexual interest in children. You don’t acknowledge your interest in children, and it seems to me you struggle to see the harm in the offences you have committed.

“I should lock you up to at least keep you away from the public and out of harm’s way for the period in custody. But the more constructive approach is to pass a sentence so you will have the probation service in your life to assist you and steer you to rid yourself of this interest in children.”

The judge said that if he gave Ashbrook a suspended sentence it would be “a last chance to put you back on the right track”. “I am hopeful there is a prospect of rehabilitation in your case.”

He sentenced him to 13 months in prison suspended for two years. In addition he ordered him to attend 20 rehabilitation activity days and attend a Building Choices course. On top of that he must complete 100 hours of unpaid work.

“It is very much the Last Chance Saloon for you,” he said. “Let me make it clear, if you breach any of these you will be sent to prison.

“You will decide what happens now. You will get help to put this obsession of yours behind you. If you don’t then I’m afraid it’s up to you.

“This case is reserved to me. So if I see you again you will go to prison. Is that absolutely clear?”