Nicholas Moore denied bail after allegedly organising to meet 14-year-old girl at Adelaide Hills motel

A Riverland father has appeared in court after allegedly organising to meet who he believed was a 14-year-old girl at a motel in the Adelaide Hills.

A Loxton man has been ordered to remain behind bars until at least August after allegedly attempting to groom who he believed was a 14-year-old girl and 10-year-old girl, a court has heard.

Nicholas Moore, 56, appeared in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Thursday via video link from custody where the court heard he attempted to meet one of the young girls at a motel in Hahndorf – girls who were actually police officers.

Detectives from Berri Criminal Investigation Branch and the Public Protection Branch arrested the 56-year-old Riverland man at Bowden on Wednesday.

Mr Moore has been charged with two counts of communicate to make a child amenable to sexual activity and two counts of produce child exploitation material.

Magistrate Karim Soetratma said police allege Mr Moore messaged who he believed were two young girls.

“In one case, he organised to meet the 14-year-old at a Hahndorf motel in terms that were graphically explicit and sufficiently graphically explicit that they fall within the definition of child exploitation material,” he said.

The man will next appear in the Adelaide Magistrates Court in August. Picture NCA NewsWire / Emma Brasier

“It appears, in the prosecution case, that he had in fact booked the room at the Hahndorf motel and had items ready there as he had promised.”

Mr Soetratma said the other person, who appeared to be a 10-year-old girl, was also approached by the defendant online.

“It’s alleged that he communicated with that 10-year-old and that 10-year-old’s mother … to babysit her child and expressed his intentions to sexually abuse the young child,” he said.

“It wasn’t a child in any case, and in fact, the persons with whom he communicated with were undercover police officers.”

James Caldicott, for Mr Moore, applied for home detention bail on behalf of his client to reside at his Loxton address to reside with “a number of pets”.

Prosecution opposed the application saying they believed he could be a flight risk with his only connection to the state being his 14-year-old daughter with whom he has no contact with.

Mr Soetratma denied the application and ordered Mr Moore be remanded in custody.

Mr Moore will next appear in the Adelaide Magistrate Court in August for a charge determination hearing.