Catfishing victim, 12, took own life over abuser's demands

A tribunal has heard that a 12-year-old miss took her ain beingness alternatively than comply with an online abuser's demands.

Alexander McCartney, 26, of Lissummon Road extracurricular Newry, pleaded blameworthy to manslaughter earlier this year aft the miss killed herself.

McCartney has antecedently admitted 185 charges, including much than 60 kid victims.

He is being sentenced for a litany of crimes successful what has been described arsenic “the UK's largest catfishing case”.

Throughout the proceeding connected Thursday, McCartney sat successful the dock looking downwards astatine his feet, with his hands covering his ears.

But the tribunal could perceive each connection of the heart-breaking item of his run of abuse.

Catfishing involves the usage of a mendacious individuality online to befriend and exploit victims.

In this case, it progressive the terrible intersexual exploitation of young girls aged 10 to 16 connected societal media, mostly Snapchat.

Pretending to beryllium a girl, McCartney recovered and befriended girls who were said to beryllium struggling with sexuality each implicit the world.

He utilized flattery to get a compromising photograph and past usage it to blackmail and endanger the children into committing appalling acts oregon helium would people the images online.

More to follow.