AN online flirtation between a man in his 30s and an under-age teen led to sex sessions on a supermarket car park, a court heard.

Prosecutors have told a Preston Crown Court jury how John Shepperd met the boy, outside Asda in Burnden, and The Valley, on at least 10 occasions after they hooked up via a chatroom.

The alleged victim later told police how he would be given cash or vodka for sex, and was offered more if Shepperd didn't wear a condom throughout. Interviewed by detectives, he added: "He was fully aware of my age."

Miss Snowden, prosecuting, said the younger party did not immediately report the relationship, said to have taken place between 2005 and 2008.

But he went to the authorities when he saw a picture of Shepperd online and was concerned he might be working with children, she added.

Shepperd has insisted while he recalled once exchanging messages in an online forum with someone matching his description, he had never met up with a teenage boy for sex.

He also told officers how he had been approached by the alleged victim, now in his 20s, demanding money to buy his silence. Shepperd, of Roe Avenue, Worsley, has denied four offences of sexual activity with a child. The trial continues.