Household Cavalry soldier snared by undercover police officer after plotting to rape 10-month-old baby

A Household Cavalry soldier who plotted to rape a seven-year-old girl and a 10-month-old baby has been jailed for 12 years.

Graham Jarvis, 38, agreed online to sexually abuse the children, planning to travel from his central London barracks to Wales to carry out the attacks. Unbeknownst to him, he was actually communicating with an undercover police officer posing as the mother.

At Southwark Crown Court on Thursday, Jarvis was sentenced to 12 years in prison for two counts of attempting to arrange the commission of a child sex offence.

Judge Adam Hiddleston told Jarvis "this was not a case of fantasy on your part", finding that he genuinely intended to assault the children.

The judge told him: "I have no doubt whatsoever at the time you made the arrangements, you believed the children were real, a seven-year-old girl and a 10-month-old baby, you wanted to meet them and when you did, with the assistance of their mother, you intended to rape them."

He noted he read the soldier’s messages "with horror", saying they demonstrated his "cold and clinical" attitude and readiness to "treat them simply as objects to satisfy your urges".

Deciding Jarvis poses an ongoing danger to children, the judge ordered him to serve at least eight years in custody, with an extra two years on licence.

The offences occurred in mid-January 2024 during online exchanges with a woman claiming to have a seven-year-old daughter and a 10-month-old baby.

The court heard Jarvis said he was "into girls" and arranged to drive from London to her home. He asked about the older girl's sexual experience—being told she was previously abused by two men—and asked the mother to help him rape the baby.

Police arrested Jarvis in February 2024 before he could make the journey.

Lisa Wilson, defending, said Jarvis was dismissed from the military following his convictions. She said he was "at a low ebb" due to a "traumatic period", adding: "The court will be asking itself why a man with an extremely positive military career found himself committing such disgusting offences."

Jarvis, previously residing at barracks in Hyde Park, denied the charges but was convicted at trial. He has since completed an animal psychology degree with the Open University and must serve at least two-thirds of his 12-year sentence.