A man who was being tracked by four paedophile hunters at the same time has walked free from court.

Darren Volante sent images of his privates and even arranged for what he thought was a 13-year-old girl to come and meet him for sex at his Toothill home.

But when the 31-year-old went to the bus stop near his house he was instead met by the vigilante group who filmed as the police arrested him.

And when police examined his computers they found he was in contact with three other 'girls' who all turned out to be decoys set up by online paedophile hunters.

Now, after hearing he had learning difficulties, a judge has put him on a two year jail term suspended for two years so he can go on a sex offenders' programme.

Colin Meeke, prosecuting, told Swindon Crown Court how Volante contacted the profile of a 13-year-old called Lauren on Facebook.

Almost immediately he said the defendant started making crude sexualised comments to the girl and sent her the picture, asking for similar ones back.

"He invites sexual congress, he invites images, he offers to send images himself. An arrangement was made that he should meet Lauren," he said.

Volante went to the bus stop by the nearby pub to collect the 'child', after she said she was held up, and he was met by the hunters.

Mr Meeke said they videoed the arrest on Monday February 19 to stream live on Facebook, getting more than 60,000 hits.

At the same time another group the defendant was also in contact with Ella, who said she was 14, Lexi, supposedly 13, and Polly, also claiming to be aged 14.

The court heard that each followed a similar pattern of him immediately making sexual comments, again sending out a picture of his penis to two of them.

Volante, of Beaulieu Close, Toothill, pleaded guilty to four counts of attempted sexual communication with a child under 16, three of attempting to cause a child to watch sexual activity and attempting to meet a child after sexual grooming.

Gareth James, defending, said his client went to a school for children with learning difficulties and was clearly inadequate in his social functioning.

He said he had never had a job, had a speech impediment and was also unsure of the age of consent.

Since his arrest he said he had not sought to replace his computer and no longer had a smart phone.

Passing sentence Judge Jason Taylor QC said "The pattern throughout was the same: it has been described by the prosecution, and I agree, as ham fisted, crude and unsophisticated.

"Having seen you in court I note that there are times you appear not to have been following everything that has been said.

"I can't ignore the fact that you are classed as a high risk of sexual offending and you were communicating with four different people.

"Not only will you bests benefit from the assistance offered to you but so will society if you have assistance to deal with the issues you undoubtedly face."

He initially passed sentences which totalled 26 months, only chopping two off later as it would be too long to suspend, explaining he had made an error in calculation.