JOSEPH DE SOUZA

SURREY MAN JAILED FOR 13 YEARS FOR ONLINE CHILD SEX OFFENCES

On Friday, January 16, Joseph De Souza, aged 32, of West Molesey, was sentenced to 13 years in prison and given a lifetime Sexual Harm Prevention Order after pleading guilty to 53 offences including multiple counts of causing a child to watch a sexual act and sexual communication with a child.

After the explicit exchange, De Souza was swiftly arrested, and all his electronic devices were seized revealing the full extent of his offending.

Whilst some of his young victims have been identified by police, work remains ongoing to identify others from the images he procured from them through extensive online grooming.

Detective Sergeant Stephen Bosel from Surrey Police’s Specialist Crime Command stated: “The victims in this case will be forever changed by what they were exposed to at a young age and asked to do by this offender.

This case serves as another warning that if you have never seen the person you are talking to online in real life – they may not be who you think they are - especially if you are being pressured to share content that makes you uncomfortable or is sexual in nature.

It is so important that we continue educating young people about the dangers of talking to strangers - both in the real world and in their interactions online - and have those open conversations about what is and isn’t appropriate content to share with someone.” Surrey Police have a dedicated Paedophile Online Investigation Team (POLIT) who work to protect children and young people from becoming victims of such offences.