A MAN has appeared in a Tamworth court on online grooming charges, a day after his arrest by a secret team of detectives.
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Robert John Bailey was granted bail with a list of conditions on Thursday, but was not required to enter pleas to his eight charges.
Magistrate Julie Soars ordered him to live with a family member in West Tamworth, but he must report to police in Gunnedah twice-a-week.
He's banned from possessing or using a mobile phone or device that can access the internet, unless it is strictly for work purposes.
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Bailey's also prohibited from using or accessing any social media platform or online chat room; and must stay out of trouble; and attend any appointment ordered by authorities.
He will front court again in July.
The 50-year-old was arrested at a Gunnedah home on Wednesday morning by detectives from the state's Child Abuse and Sex Crime Squad's Child Exploitation Internet Unit (CEIU).
Detectives from the specialist unit claim they started engaging with the man online earlier this month.
It's the police case Bailey believed he was communicating with a 13-year-old girl online.
Officers allege he had sexually explicit conversations about acts he wanted to perform on the young girl.
Police claim he also sent material of a sexually explicit nature.
Strike Force Trawler - an ongoing sting by the CEIU - then moved, travelling to Gunnedah where the 50-year-old man was arrested about 8.30am.
Police also raided the home and seized a mobile phone which they confirmed would be subject to specialist examinations.
The accused was taken to Gunnedah Police Station for questioning.
He was subsequently charged with one count of using a carriage service to groom a person under 16 for sex; three counts of using a carriage service to solicit child abuse material; and four counts of using a carriage service to transmit communication to a child under 16 years.
The accused was denied bail and spent the night in custody, before being granted bail.
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Breanna Chillingworth
Northern Daily Leader Senior Crime and Court Reporter
Northern Daily Leader Senior Crime and Court Reporter
