JOHN CROTTY JAILED IN CARDIFF FOR CHILD PROSTITUTION ARRANGEMENTS IN THE PHILIPPINES

In April 2012, John Crotty was sentenced to nine years in prison by a Cardiff judge for his heinous online activities involving the exploitation of children in the Philippines. Crotty, 54, exploited impoverished families while living in sheltered accommodation in the Rhymney Valley before his arrest. He preyed on vulnerable mothers by offering gifts or money in exchange for them to allow their daughters to be filmed in shower or sleeping nude, and he repeatedly requested to see their private parts.

During one recorded chat with a mother, Crotty asked her daughter’s age; upon being told she was only five, he then requested to see her genital area. The mother responded by telling him he was 'abnormal and a maniac.' Despite such responses, Judge David Wynn Morgan noted that some mothers were so desperate they would go along with his requests online. The judge described Crotty’s actions as highly calculated, involving careful grooming, persistence, and manipulation of the mothers.

The court heard that Crotty was capable of doing everything in his power to secure compliance from the mothers, reflecting a disturbing perversion and lack of remorse. During his trial at Cardiff Crown Court, Crotty claimed that friends must have been using his computer in his secure flat at Ysgwydd Gwyn, Jenkins Row, Deri, while he was asleep. However, evidence showed he was awake until lunchtime, using his computer through the night.

This case is believed to be one of the first of its kind in Wales. Crotty faced charges including arranging child prostitution and possession of indecent images, involving activities over 7,000 miles from the UK. He denied attempting to arrange child sex offences, but the jury rejected his claims that a friend in his seventies was responsible for the illegal activity. The jury unanimously found Crotty guilty.

It was established that Crotty had interacted with women through online chat rooms and visits to the Philippines. His sentence includes five years of custody, with the remaining period spent on licence and subject to recall until 2021. Crotty’s name will be on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life, and he is permanently barred from working with children.

Additionally, a Sexual Offences Prevention Order was issued, prohibiting him from residing in the same house as a child under 16 or having unsupervised contact with any child. Crotty is also banned from using any internet device that does not store a usage history, which must be made available to police upon request.