A man convicted of asking for sex instead of rent has been jailed for 12 months.

Christopher Cox, the first person to be convicted of such an offence, “targeted vulnerable young women” who needed a place to stay, Guildford Crown Court heard.

One woman was described as homeless, “unwell and desperate”.

Cox had previously pleaded guilty to a charge of controlling prostitution for gain and two counts of inciting prostitution for gain.

The 53-year-old advertised on classifieds website Craigslist for young or homeless women to stay with him at his then home in Cranleigh, Surrey.

He asked for photos and said they should wear bikinis and provide sexual services in exchange for a room.

The charges, connected to offences made between May and November 2018, related to three separate women.

After meeting them, Cox realised they had triggered the interest of two undercover reporters who were working on a programme presented by Jeremy Kyle.

Kyle confronted Cox and told him that “what he was doing in targeting young vulnerable women for sexual favours was morally wrong and criminal”, prosecutor Ross Talbott said.

Later, in a message to friends, Cox described his behaviour as his “dirty secret”, adding: “I got myself into a bit of hot water due to my sex-for-rent tenants.”

Even after being confronted by the TV team, he carried on placing adverts.

Following an investigation by ITV researchers, the allegations were passed to Surrey Police in 2019, and the force identified a woman who said she entered into a sex-for-rent arrangement with Cox.

Judge Robert Fraser told Cox he was involved in “very deliberately targeting homeless women who were vulnerable”.

The judge added that such offending has now become “colloquially known as sex-for-rent” and “this is the first such prosecution that has been brought”.

Cox has a previous conviction for assaulting a boy when he was 18, the court heard.

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