CO DOWN STUDENT’S 400 CHARGES AFTER GLOBAL CHILD PORN CRACKDOWN

21-yr-old in court over range of sick offences

A STUDENT charged in the UK’S “biggest ever investigation” involving a global paedophile network was charged yesterday with almost 400 new offences.

Alexander Mccartney appeared at Newry Magistrates Court to face a litany of sexual charges involving children over a 30-month period.

The 21-year-old, who spoke only once to acknowledge his name, has already been charged with 24 offences, including inciting sex with a child and blackmail.

Yesterday a detective constable said she could connect Mccartney with 386 new sex offences allegedly committed between January 2017 and July this year.

Defence counsel asked for a “short version of the charges to be read out” to the accused.

They include;

44 charges of communicating with a child

38 of incitement

47 of distribution of images 47 of intimidation

61 of making indecent images 61 of possession 47 of blackmail Two of encouraging sexual activity with an animal, and One of intimadition. No details surrounding the new charges were given to the court but a previous hearing heard that following his arrest police seized 12 computers, being examined by officers.

It was also alleged Mccartney may have blackmailed thousand of youngsters worldwide.

The investigation is named “catfishing”, a term used to describe the activity of online scammers using a fake identity or social network profile to contact victims and trick them into believing they are someone they can trust. The new charges come after an Article 47 was granted on Wednesday by the PSNI to question Mccartney on the new allegations for three days.

No bail application was made during the short court hearing.

The case, which is already “the biggest investigation of its kind in the UK” could become even greater following the latest forensic developments.

The court heard the new allegations involved the same paedophile investigation on which the defendant was currently being held.

The judge remanded the defendant, of Lisummon Road in Newry, back into custody and adjourned the case to January 15.