Catfishing: Alexander McCartney jailed for minimum of 20 years
"Jailed For Life: UK's Biggest Catfishing Case"
Alexander McCartney has been held in jail since he appeared in court for the first time in July 2019.
Caution: The following story includes difficult and troubling accounts of severe sexual abuse involving children.
A man from Northern Ireland has received a life sentence, with a minimum of 20 years behind bars, for severely abusing children online and for the manslaughter of a 12-year-old girl.
Alexander McCartney, a 26-year-old from County Armagh, acknowledged his involvement in 185 offenses, which consist of over 50 counts of blackmail.
Currently considered one of the most active online child predators globally, he fabricated false identities to exploit around 3,500 victims, aged between 10 and 16, across over 30 different countries.
He admitted to charges of manslaughter following the tragic death of a 12-year-old girl from the United States, Cimarron Thomas, who took her own life in 2018 while he was mistreating her.
On Friday, Mr. Justice O'Hara informed the Belfast Crown Court that McCartney, who has spent five years in jail, will not be eligible for release until 2039.
He stated, "I don't feel any regret or guilt."
He commented that it's difficult to imagine a sexual offender who poses a greater danger than this individual.
"Understanding Catfishing: McCartney's Role Explained"
Caution: The following section contains upsetting information about severe child abuse and includes explicit language.
Alexander McCartney's series of offenses from 2013 to 2019 has been referred to as "the biggest catfishing scandal in the UK."
Catfishing refers to the act of pretending to be someone else on the internet in order to form relationships with and take advantage of people.
The term "catfish" refers to someone who has invented a false identity online.
They focus on individuals using social media and messaging applications, often for the purpose of harassment and scams.
From the comfort of his home in Northern Ireland, McCartney caused fear and destruction in the lives of countless children globally, all while sitting behind his computer screen.
He mainly contacted most of his victims through Snapchat, though there were a few instances where he also used other social media platforms like Instagram and Kik.
Using 64 different devices, he impersonated a young girl to trick his victims into sharing personal photos.
At times, he would use images he had taken from other young girls and act as if he were them while communicating with new targets.
After obtaining the photos, he would threaten them to provide even more explicit images.
He threatened to reveal their actions to their friends and family if they didn't send the information.
He pressured the children to include their younger siblings in the mistreatment, which extended to family pets and belongings as well.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Snapchat expressed its sympathy for the victims of McCartney.
A representative from Snapchat stated that the sexual exploitation of anyone is both terrible and against the law, expressing their deep sympathy for the victims involved in this situation.
"If we find this activity or receive a report about it, we will take it down, suspend the account in violation, and notify the authorities."
The company stated that it has implemented additional safety measures for teenagers to reduce the chances of them being approached by unfamiliar individuals.
"With our in-app Family Center, parents can view their teenagers' contacts and see who their friends are," they mentioned.
Often, frightened children pleaded with McCartney to halt and asked him not to share their photos online.
Some individuals expressed intentions to harm themselves or take their own lives.
One victim shared a photo of a gash on her arm. McCartney responded that he "didn't care at all."
One girl expressed, "I can't stop trembling; I feel like I might collapse."
McCartney responded, "It doesn’t matter to me."
The police have reported that at times he exchanged the images with other individuals involved in similar offenses.
He maintained a log of the kids he had harmed and took screenshots of their Snapchat location tags to track their whereabouts.
He was so persistent in his mistreatment that he created a set of messages that he would replicate and send to the kids.
The court found that the damage McCartney inflicted was beyond measure, and that he "demeaned and embarrassed" his victims for his personal sexual pleasure.
Numerous children who fell victim to him remain unidentified, yet their lives have been altered permanently.
Young girls faced horrifying threats in the most unimaginable manner.
While it's estimated that around 3,500 children were affected, the investigation concentrated on 70 specific cases to keep the workload manageable for the court.
While looking into the matter, prosecutors found one instance that resulted in devastating outcomes.
In 2018, he reached out to 12-year-old Cimarron Thomas from West Virginia, USA. After praising her and receiving a photo, he started his pattern of harassment.
Photo credit: Dale Thomas
Cimarron Thomas was just 12 years old when McCartney started exploiting her through online sexual abuse.
He insisted that she send him more photos and warned that he would share her pictures online and reveal her identity if she refused to comply with his demands.
Feeling afraid, she kept what was happening to her a secret from everyone.
McCartney continued to seek her out for additional photos and insisted that her younger sister needed to be part of the shots as well.
She declined to go along with it and declared that she would take her own life. In response, he set up a countdown timer.
Cimarron accidentally discharged her family's legally owned gun, resulting in a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, all while she was on a call with McCartney.
Her little sister discovered her.
In a statement delivered outside the courthouse on Friday, Cimarron's grandparents, Peggy and Dale Thomas, urged parents to "ensure that lines of communication remain open about the dangers posed by certain individuals online."
Earlier this year, McCartney admitted to his role in the manslaughter of Cimarron Thomas.
"A Repulsive Child Predator"
On Friday, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) announced that they were first alerted after Police Scotland reported that a 13-year-old girl had been lured by an adult suspect, who is thought to live in Northern Ireland and posed as a 13-year-old girl.
Detective Chief Superintendent Eamonn Corrigan from the PSNI praised the sentencing, stating that McCartney is simply an abhorrent child predator.
He mentioned that McCartney's devices contained "tens of thousands of images and videos of underage girls engaged in sexual activities while being coerced."
The detective mentioned that by collaborating with Homeland Security, the Public Prosecution Service, and the National Crime Agency, they were able to find victims in the United States, New Zealand, and at least 28 other nations.
PSNI Detective Chief Superintendent Eamonn Corrigan expressed his approval of the sentencing.
"In my opinion, the only suitable place for McCartney is in prison," said Detective Chief Superintendent Corrigan.
Authorities indicated that McCartney became the first individual in the UK to receive a manslaughter sentence for a case involving a victim living in another country.
Mr. Corrigan went on to say that McCartney might as well have been the one to pull the trigger himself.
Catherine Kierans, who is currently leading the Serious Crime Unit of the Public Prosecution Service, stated that McCartney has inflicted "irreparable harm."
US Homeland Security stated that McCartney fully earned the entirety of his punishment.
"We appreciate that law enforcement officials in Northern Ireland decided to arrest and charge McCartney for his involvement in the girl's death," stated Special Agent Derek W. Gordon.
If you have been impacted by any of the topics discussed in this article, you can find help through the BBC Action Line.
