UK’s ‘most prolific catfisher’ who drove girl, 12, to take her own life jailed

Online predator Alexander McCartney who drove 1 of his catfish victims to instrumentality her ain life, has been jailed for a minimum of 20 years.

The 26-year-old pleaded blameworthy astatine Belfast Crown Court aft admitting 185 charges involving 70 children.

He posed arsenic a teenage miss to befriend young females connected Snapchat earlier blackmailing them.

McCartney, primitively from Newry, Northern Ireland, utilized his method cognition arsenic a machine subject pupil to transportation retired his crimes from his puerility bedroom.

McCartney is believed to beryllium the UK’s astir prolific catfish offender with victims identified crossed the world.

Other victims were identified successful countries similar Australia, New Zealand and the US.

Cimarron Thomas, 12, from West Virginia, took her ain beingness successful May 2018 alternatively than comply with his demands for her to impact her younger sister successful enactment acts.

Ben Thomas, her father, took his ain beingness 18 months later.

McCartney antecedently pleaded blameworthy to manslaughter relating to Cimarron’s decease and admitted 59 counts of blackmail, dozens of charges related to making and distributing indecent photographs and scores of charges of inciting children to prosecute successful intersexual activity.

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