Man jailed for “abhorrent and calculated” online child sex offences

A man has been sentenced to nine years in prison after committing online sexual offences against three girls aged between eight and 14.

Edward Durlik, 41 (08/01/1983), of Woking created multiple fake online profiles to gain his victims’ trust. He posed intermittently as an 11-year-old girl, a 13-year-old boy, and a 13-year-old girl, and even used photos of a child known to him to support the fake online persona he was portraying.

When speaking to one of his victims, Durlik devised a points game where he would challenge her to send him photos throughout the day. Each photo would be scored, with lower points for normal, everyday images, and higher points for more sexually graphic images and videos. If the victim stopped communicating with him, Durlik would use guilt and blame to force her to send more images.

Police became aware of the messages when a victim’s father found sexualised messages, images, and videos on his daughter’s phone. Durlik was identified through phone work and arrested in June 2023 on suspicion of inciting a child under 13 to engage in penetrative sexual activity.

A forensic examination of his phone discovered 1,055 indecent images of children, 258 of which were Category A images, the most serious, as well as 296 Category B images and 501 Category C images. It was also established that 471 indecent images/movies had been distributed to 39 separate users online.

Durlik was charged on 29 April 2024 with the following offences:

• Five counts of causing or inciting a girl under 13 to engage in penetrative sexual activity (covering 11 separate occasions)
• One count of causing or inciting a girl under 16 to engage in penetrative sexual activity (covering more than two occasions)
• One count of causing or inciting a girl under 13 to engage in non-penetrative sexual activity (covering two separate occasions)
• Two counts of causing a child to watch or look at an image of sexual activity (covering more than five occasions)
• Two counts of encouraging the distribution of indecent images (covering eight separate occasions)
• Two counts of engaging in sexual communication with a child
• Three counts of making an indecent photo/pseudo photo of a child
• Three counts of distributing an indecent photo/pseudo photo of a child

During sentencing on Friday, 14 February at Guildford Crown Court, His Honour Judge Sellers described Durlik as “dangerous” due to the sustained nature of the offending, significant planning, and manipulative behaviour he employed, and deemed that he should serve a further three-year period of extended licence. He was also issued with a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and a Deprivation Order, and placed on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Steve Branch from Surrey Police Online Investigation Team said “Durlik’s offending against these three vulnerable victims was abhorrent and calculated, especially using the persona of a child known to him to carry out these crimes. The courage of the victims to come forward cannot be underestimated. We welcome today’s sentence and hope it provides them with some closure and allows them to move forward with their lives.”

Looking to talk to children about internet safety?

Visit the Childline website for resources on staying safe online: https://www.childline.org.uk/info-advice/bullying-abuse-safety/online-mobile-safety/staying-safe-online/

Surrey County Council also have parents and carers’ guides to sharing images: https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/children/support-and-advice/families/support-and-advice/keeping-your-family-safe/internet-safety