2018: JAIL FOR SWANSEA SNAPCHAT PAEDOPHILE WHO BLACKMAILED GIRLS ONLINE
Shane Wakefield, a Morriston resident aged 25, has been sentenced to eight years after he groomed girls he met on Snapchat and coerced them into sharing obscene images.He used false online profiles to establish contact with eight young females, facing 17 separate charges related to online sexual abuse of children.
Court proceedings in Swansea revealed that Wakefield frequently promised gifts, such as iTunes vouchers, to manipulate the girls into sending indecent photographs.
The police tracked him down after a victim in Scotland reported his threats, in which he warned he would distribute the explicit images unless she complied with his demands.
Arrested in September 2015, Wakefield’s subsequent investigation uncovered his activity across various social media apps including Kik, Snapchat, and MeowChat, targeting girls both in the UK and abroad.
Authorities confirmed that Wakefield exploited pictures gained through gifts as a means to pressure his victims into providing more explicit images and videos.
Many victims, some driven to self-harm, suffered profound emotional distress and begged for him to cease.
He was convicted on 17 charges, including eight counts of encouraging a child to engage in sexual activity and four counts of attempting to do so.
Wakefield was ordered to be on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely.
South Wales Police’s Det.
Const.
Richard Jones stated, “This case is among the most distressing I have seen in nearly twenty years of service.
Wakefield deliberately chose vulnerable young girls to satisfy his own sexual desires, and his actions have caused lasting trauma for the victims.
Many suffered self-harm during and after his abuse.
Their bravery, along with that of their families, has been remarkable throughout the detailed investigations and court process.”
