Victorian man, 66, charged with grooming a child online

A 66-year-old man who had allegedly driven to NSW for a sexual encounter with a child has been charged with online grooming.

A 66-year-old man allegedly drove to NSW for a sexual encounter with a young girl when he was nabbed in a police sting.

The Victorian man was charged with grooming offences and arrested at Liverpool in Western Sydney on Friday.

His arrest comes after a month-long investigation by the NSW Police Child Abuse and Sex Crimes Squad who started talking with the Yallourn North man online in May.

Strike force detectives arrested a 66-year-old man in Liverpool on Friday morning. Picture: NSW Police

Police will allege the man believed he was speaking with the mother of a girl aged under 10 and engaged in sexually explicit conversations about acts he wished to perform on the child.

They claim he arranged to meet the mother and the girl for a sexual encounter.

But he was nabbed and charged with use carriage service to procure a person under the age of 16 years for sexual activity at Liverpool Police Station.

He was refused bail to appear at Parramatta Bail Court on Saturday.

The man was due to appear in court on Saturday. Picture: NSW Police

Detective Chief Inspector Chris Goddard from the Child Abuse and Sex Crimes Squad urged parents to speak to young people about the dangers associated with social media.

“With school holidays in the next couple of weeks, parents and guardians need to have regular conversations with children about how they can keep themselves safe online,” Mr Goddard said.

“For young people, engaging with people who they do not know on any online platform can put them at risk.

Police encourage anyone with concerns about suspected child abuse or exploitation to contact Crime Stoppers.