'Predatory shark preying on children' jailed over campaign of abuse
A ‘predatory shark’ who targeted children ‘swimming the dark waters of the internet’ has been jailed following a campaign of abuse against more than 100 victims across the globe.
Justin Swaddle force 117 victims into sexual activity and acts of self-harm - including carving his name into their bodies and carrying out sexual acts.
Swaddle, of Meanwood in Leeds, was 17 at the time his offending first came to light as part of an investigation by the National Crime Agency.
His offences were described by a judge who sentenced him as 'one of the more extreme cases' they had seen.
Swaddle, now 20, was part of what is known as a ‘com group’ online, where people coerce victims into physically harming or sexually abusing themselves and enjoy the status and notoriety that cames with sharing explicit and shocking content with other users.
He was charged with a number of child sex abuse offences and blackmail, and admitted all of the offences at Leeds Crown Court on July 2.
He was jailed for two years on Monday (Aug 10) and will subject to a sexual harm prevention order for 10 years and is required to sign the sex offenders’ register.
The NCA found victims ranging from aged 13 to 17 from across the world, including in Norway, New Zealand, USA, Canada and Australia, as well as eight victims in the UK.
One 17-year-old victim said she met Swaddle in November 2022 on Discord, before moving to speaking with him on Snapchat where the conversations became sexual and self-harm was discussed.
Swaddle then requested nude images from her and told her to carve his username into her body.
He used aliases such as Moscow, Epstein and Rugen while online.
His victim said Swaddle claimed to have her name, address and school details and she did what he wanted because she didn’t want to upset him because his mood changed if she didn’t do as he asked.
She became aware he had recorded calls where sexual activity had taken place and shared them with a group, then threatened to use her address and school information to make her send him more images and videos.
Telegram messages found on Swaddle’s devices showed he had tried to incite a child to sexually abuse a younger child and record it for him, threatening to leak indecent images if the content was not sent.
Investigators also found numerous images showing victims with self-harm injuries and indecent images of children in Categories A to C, with A being the most severe.
Danielle Pownall Operations Manager from the NCA, said: "Justin Swaddle targeted young and vulnerable victims all over the world to abuse and scare them into carrying out shocking self-harm and sexual activity, purely to gain popularity with his peers online.
"He gained the trust of his victims, before collecting private information about them so he could threaten to share their intimate images or report them to their school or parents to incite further content.
"While the number of people involved in Com groups are relatively small, the impact it has on victims is high and long-lasting, as Swaddle's offending shows.
"We are extremely grateful for the assistance of West Yorkshire Police, our international partners and specialist prosecutors at the CPS in bringing a dangerous offender to justice.
"The NCA is coordinating the response to Com groups in the UK, working with a range of law enforcement, health and safeguarding partners to better understand pathways into offending and identify opportunities for prevention and intervention."