A RIBBLE Valley businessman has been exposed as a child porn pervert after chatting to an undercover police officer posing as a paedophile on the internet.

Daniel Henry, 34, was caught red-handed chatting to the officer when police swooped on his family's business premises in Blackburn last November.

Henry, of The Paddock, Sawley, became the fourth man to be sentenced as part of Operation Gower.

Henry, who was married at the time of the offences, was sentenced to 30 months in jail by Recorder Paul Sloan QC after pleading guilty to showing indecent photos of children, 18 counts of making indecent photos of children, making indecent pseudo photos of a child and two counts of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence.

After the case, Temporary Detective Inspector Vicky Law-rance of West Yorkshire Police's Child and Public Protection Unit said: “Henry is a very cunning man.

“He made concerted efforts to hide his true identity online and seemingly left no trace.

“However thanks to the covert investigator we were able to rev-eal who he is.”

Prosecutor David Gordon said the police became aware of Henry through another man, who has since been jailed for life, and the undercover officer contacted him via an internet chatroom.

Henry, who used the name ‘Preston Danny 07’ claimed to have a preference for young girls of any age.

The court heard that the undercover officer pretended to have two young daughters and Henry expressed an interest in seeing them via a two-way webcam.

As well as exchanging indecent images and links to child porn sites, Henry also asked the officer whether he had had sex with his supposed 12-year-old daughter.

Henry was found to have left messages on child porn sites.

Eventually the undercover officer managed to obtain Henry's mobile phone number and it was traced his family's supply firm in Blackburn.

A surveillance operation was mounted last November and while the officer and Henry were chatting via the internet, officers arrived at the premises and arrested him.

The police found more than 400 indecent images and movie clips of youngsters on Henry's computer and mobile phone.

The images involved children as young as two and depicted sex acts involving adults and even dogs.

Barrister John Woodward, for Henry, said his client was cons-umed with contrition and remorse and said the defendant had become involved because of the ’buzz’ he got out of shocking people.

Recorder Sloan told him: “I accept your remorse.

“As the author of the pre-sentence report makes clear, the effect on the children subjected to the kind of serious sexual abuse depicted in these images cannot be underestimated.”

Henry will be subject to an indefinite sexual offences prevention order.

He was also put on the sex offenders’ register.