WA news LIVE: WA man charged over online conversations with a child

A Cooloongup man is due to face court on Friday after allegedly having sexual conversations online with someone he believed was a 12-year-old girl.

Authorities began investigating the man after receiving a report in July of a user on a messaging platform allegedly engaging in sexualised conversations with the person they believed was a child.

Australian Federal Police executed a search warrant on the man’s home in early October and arrested the 40-year-old.

He was charged with one count of attempting to engage in sexual activity with a child using a carriage service, and faces as much as 20 years in jail of convicted.