49‑year‑old Rodolfa Galvao, from Yate in South Gloucestershire, had been communicating online with what he thought was a 14‑year‑old girl. In reality, the account was a decoy operated by a volunteer group.
Galvao arranged to meet in Swansea in July and was challenged by members of the group when he arrived at a city centre bowling alley carrying a rose and a bar of chocolate. Police were called and he was arrested before he could check in to the Mumbles accommodation he had booked for two nights.
A search of his phone revealed sexually explicit messages sent to the decoy account.
At Swansea Crown Court, Galvao pleaded guilty to attempting to meet a child under 16 following grooming. He was sentenced to 14 months in prison, placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years, and made subject to a sexual harm prevention order for the same period.
“He poses a danger to children”
Detective Constable Rebecca Brain of South Wales Police said:
“Rodolfa Galvao believed he was communicating with a child and still sent explicit sexual messages to them, even going to the lengths of arranging to meet them.
It is clear that he poses a danger to children, and it is fortunate that the ‘child’ at the other end of the conversation was not real. He is fully deserving of a spell in prison.”
The court heard Galvao had no previous convictions. Judge Paul Thomas KC said there was “only one reason” why the defendant had booked the Mumbles hotel room and that he showed “no real remorse, only self‑pity.”
Support for survivors
South Wales Police said they recognised how difficult it can be for survivors of sexual abuse to come forward, but urged victims to seek support.
“We hope cases like this one provide reassurance that victims will be listened to, treated with dignity and respect, and will be supported throughout the judicial process,” a spokesperson said.
