WIGAN MAN JAILED FOR CHILD RAPE AND BLACKMAIL OF 39 GIRLS
A man has been jailed for 14 years for child sex offences including rape and blackmail against 39 young girls.Stuart Latham, 22, from Wigan, ‘catfished’ the children into believing he was a 14-year-old boy and bribed them to provide indecent images in exchange for cash or gift cards.
He posted an online advert as 14-year-old ‘Josh’ offering girls a £200 gift card if they could send him indecent images.
He threatened to leak the images if they demanded deletion.
Girls as young as 11 responded to the ad.
Latham was sentenced at Preston Crown Court to 49 child sexual offence charges including rape, blackmail, making indecent images, and causing a child to engage in sexual activity.
He abused two girls in person, including a 12-year-old girl he raped when he was 19, who believed he was 15.
He committed dozens of online offences against 37 other victims, all aged between 12 and 15, across the UK.
Police found a phone containing around 4,000 child sex abuse images, including videos up to an hour long, when he was arrested.
The case is considered one of the largest multi-victim online child sex abuse investigations in Greater Manchester Police history, with fears that he may have more victims in the US and UK.
He was arrested after a victim revealed their sexual relationship, leading to further victims of similar offences.
The judge described Latham as 'a highly dangerous individual, a predatory sexual offender with little to no empathy or remorse,' and emphasized the emotional damage caused to the victims.
The victims expressed their courage in court, and authorities continue to seek possible additional victims.
