Online paedophile jailed
- 00:01:53
- ITN
Online paedophile jailed
A paedophile has been jailed for five years and nine months for using the internet to groom young girls.Paul Etheridge, 24, enticed his victims to send him indecent pictures of themselves in exchange for mobile phone top up vouchers.Etheridge was caught with more than 200 images of girls aged 13 to 15 on his mobile phone after detectives traced him to his home in Halesworth, Suffolk.Police tracked down many of his victims through his computer and phone records.Detectives found he had been in contact with hundreds of girls under 16 in areas across the country including Belfast, Lancashire, Norwich, London and Surrey.Etheridge admitted 26 offences, including possession of indecent images, inciting the production of indecent images, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and engaging in penetrative sexual activity with a 15-year-old girl from London.Detective Superintendent Pete O'Sullivan, of Surrey police, said: "Paul Etheridge's offending was some of the most widespread I've even seen. Most worrying of all, he escalated from downloading internet images, to grooming girls to make their own photos and actually meeting a girl to carry out sexual acts."Technology provides a wealth of benefits for young people. But with many children now owning their own mobile phone or having a computer in their bedroom, parents must also be aware of the potential dangers."© Independent Television News Limited 2008. All rights reserved.
ITN | March 7, 2008
