JOSHUA BROOKES

Joshua Brookes appeared before Chester Crown Court on Thursday, 19 February 2026, where he received a sentence of four and a half years in prison.

The sentence was handed down after the 21-year-old, residing on Vaudrey Crescent in Congleton, admitted to four counts of encouraging a girl under 13 to participate in sexual activities and two counts of producing indecent images of a child.

The court was informed that Cheshire Police’s Online Child Abuse Investigation Team (OCAIT) had been probing reports of online sexual exchanges involving an 18-year-old man and a young girl.

On 30 July 2024, officers from OCAIT detained Brookes and took control of multiple digital devices, including a mobile phone and a laptop.

Forensic analysis revealed a series of threatening messages directed at the victim.

The messages demonstrated Brookes’ coercion of the young girl to send sexualized images of herself, along with threats that he would share these images with her acquaintances if she ceased sending them.

He also threatened to harm himself and carry out a sexual assault.

Investigators found nearly 30 indecent images on Brookes’ devices.

Further investigation identified the victim as an 11-year-old girl, who confirmed that Brookes had compelled her to send the images and had threatened her if she stopped.

During police interviews, Brookes refused to comment on or defend himself against the charges.

Despite his silence, he was formally charged with the offences.

In addition to the prison sentence, Brookes has been ordered to comply with a ten-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.