A former Irvine glass factory manager who was locked up after a jury found him guilty of sending indecent images to someone he thought was a 14-year-old girl has been spared further jail time.

Brian Cox had claimed he was a “wind-up merchant” who sent the indecent images of himself to “troll” the recipient – who was actually an adult decoy.

During a trial at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court the 53-year-old claimed he was seeking to “expose scammers” on social media.

Cox, who was a team leader at the town’s Ardagh Glass factory, had claimed he knew the recipient – who in reality was a 34-year-old woman from a social media group called ‘Seek and Expose’ – was not a child.

But a jury took less than half an hour to find the married engineer guilty on two charges of sending messages for sexual gratification or for the purpose of humiliating, distressing or alarming someone he believed to be a child.

Cox was remanded in custody after the jury’s verdict last month, with Sheriff Alistair Watson saying the step was necessary “to protect the public” ahead of a risk assessment for his “pretty disgusting course of behaviour”.

When he was brought to court from custody on Wednesday, July 26, defence solicitor Simon Brown said: “He accepts he was convicted. He is under no illusions about that.

"There has been considerable fallout in his personal life and he will have to leave the family home."

Sheriff Watson told Cox: “These are serious matters involving indecent communications sent to an individual you clearly believed was a child.

"Your defence was completely rejected - and I have to say, to me it made little sense.

"My concern is the level of risk to the community. I'm somewhat reassured the [risk assessment] writer detected that while there is some risk, it is not pitched highly.

"It seems to me the protection of the public will be best served with a community order where your behaviour is challenged and conduct monitored.”

Cox was made the subject of a community payback order which will see him supervised by social workers for two years.

He was also ordered to carry out 240 hours of unpaid work within 12 months.

In addition Cox will remain on the sex offenders register for two years, with a condition barring him from any form of avoidable contact with anyone under the age of 16.

Any use of the internet must be under his own name, while he will also have to surrender his passwords to police and will not be allowed to delete any browsing history on any mobile device, computer or consoles without approval.

A spokesperson for Seek and Expose told the Times: "As a team we are disappointed with the sentence, but at least he is exposed publicly for the predator he is.

"The decoy worked so hard and submitted excellent evidence."

A spokesperson from Ardagh Glass Packaging Irvine confirmed: "Mr Cox is no longer an employee of the company.”

The trial heard Cox contacted the decoy from Seek and Expose on various occasions between January 10 and 21, 2021, using Chat Hour, Instagram and WhatsApp.

Cox’s trial was told he sent her messages and pictures of himself at his work - as well as lewd images and video - from his home in Ladyacre Drive, contacting the ‘Louise Loves Dance’ profile.

Procurator Fiscal depute Craig Wainwright told the jury Cox wrote: “Hi how are you? I’m Brian love to chat x”, while the decoy said, early in the conversation, “I’m only 14 to be honest.”

Among the seedy messages Cox sent was one saying “I want to see you all the time”, and “You can cuddle into me if you are scared”.

He also told her: “Our factory makes 800,000 bottles in 24 hours. If your mum drinks gin and whisky chances are it’s made here.”

Cox went on to ask her “have you been with a boy before?” and “if you’re curious I can show you stuff”

He then told her: “I know you’re only 14, not long to wait. Will your mum get you a car? If you had a car you could come to Scotland haha."

He added: “Have you seen guys things?” to which the decoy responded: “Only in school in books.”

After asking to send the indecent images, he later wrote: “Do you want to look now”, while the decoy replied: “I don't mind."

He then wrote: “You okay?”, before the decoy replied: "Yes, just a bit shy.”

The recipient of the messages told the trial she used software to make her face appear younger for use on her social media profile, and that she set her age to 19 on the profile, rather than 14, to avoid being reported.

Solicitor Graeme Cunningham, who represented Cox at the trial, told the jury they “might be surprised” that his client “100 per cent accepts sending the photos and video” while still pleading not guilty to the charge.

Giving evidence in his own defence, Cox told the jury: "It was purposefully and wholly to wind people up. I'm not interested in general chit chat.

“I seek out scammers. I'm a wind-up merchant. I find it funny.

"It was to wind the person up. I knew 100 per cent it was not who they said. They had to be in their 20s or early 30s."