An Armagh man jailed for the manslaughter of a 12-year-old girl and more than 180 other offences relating to child abuse has been described by detectives as a "disgusting child predator" who "deserves every minute he serves in prison".
Alexander McCartney, 26, from Lisummon Road outside Newry, who was the subject of one of the largest investigations in the world into the sexual extortion of children, has been sentenced to a minimum of 20 years in prison.
McCartney pretended to be a teenage girl to target children across the world, a practice known as catfishing.
He pleaded guilty to a total of 185 offences involving 70 young girls who were aged between ten and 16 when he targeted them via social media platforms, mostly Snapchat.
They included the manslaughter of Cimarron Thomas from West Virginia in the US, who took her own life as a result of being blackmailed by him.
The grandparents of Cimarron have released a statement saying they are left "devastated by our granddaughter's passing".
They said: "We know that nothing that we do or say will bring her back. But if we can help another family to not have to go through what we did, something good could come out of her death.
"Parents, please keep the doors of communication open concerning the evil of some people online."
In Cimarron case, she had pleaded with him to stop and said she would take her own life. He replied: "I don’t care."
The PSNI said he then started a countdown for her to comply with his sick requests or he would carry out his threat to send previously captured images to her contacts. During this countdown she took her own life.
Tragically, her father took his own life in the aftermath of her death, never knowing the terrible truth of what really happened.
As McCartney has spent five years in prison on remand, he will serve at least another 15 before being considered for release.
Police have estimated that the total number of his victims to be around 3,500.
Many of these children were too afraid to speak to their parents and guardians about the abuse, only identified through the evidence detectives located on McCartney’s devices and the diligence and determination of the officers.
PSNI Detective Chief Superintendent Eamonn Corrigan said his team were determined to bring McCartney to court to answer for his crimes.
He said: "McCartney is nothing but a disgusting child predator who was posing as young girls online to groom, manipulate and sexually abuse his victims, as young as four, to satisfy his own sexual perversions and that of other online child sexual offenders.
"We have worked tirelessly around the clock on this case, with international criminal justice partners to safeguard victims and build a robust case against this man whose offending has shocked communities around the world."
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Special Agent in Charge Derek W. Gordon of Homeland Security Investigations Washington DC said: "His wretched conduct tragically led to a child in West Virginia taking her own life.
"We are thankful that our law enforcement partners in Northern Ireland saw fit to apprehend and charge McCartney for his role in the girl’s death.
"Their investigation and prosecution of this case were nothing short of brilliant. HSI Washington, DC will continue to work with our law enforcement partners, at home and abroad, to ensure that detestable criminal actors like McCartney answer for their transgressions."
On one harrowing occasion it took McCartney only nine minutes to groom, sexually abuse and blackmail a girl of only 12 years of age.
Northern Ireland's Justice Minister Naomi Long said she welcomed the outcome of the "utterly devastating case".
She said: "The level of depravity, deviousness and utter disregard Alexander McCartney demonstrated for his young victims was horrifying; and those victims, not all of whom will ever be able to be identified, deserved justice to be done."
""McCartney committed his vile crimes behind a cloak of online anonymity, but through a comprehensive and robust operation across the criminal justice system he has been exposed as the vile and prolific child sexual predator that he truly is," she added.
'We will never forgive predator'
A father of two of McCartney’s victims from New Zealand also bravely spoke out about the impact this has had on his family.
His two daughters, 12 and ten, were contacted by McCartney online in December 2017, who then coerced his eldest daughter and took intimate images of her, using them then to blackmail.
He said: "As parents you do your best to shield and protect your children from the monsters of the world, only to find out too late the dangers of the internet are all too real and that you weren't vigilant enough.
"Having both of our daughters involved is gut-wrenching. Within the four walls of our home they should be safe, and he manipulated and preyed on their innocence for his own sick enjoyment.
"My wife and I are so thankful that our eldest daughter spoke up. The impact this ordeal has had on her mental health, her ability to trust, and in forming quality relationships with others cannot be understated.
"We love that despite all of that she was strong enough to play her part in bringing him to justice.
"We hope the publicity around cases like this helps others come forward, no matter how difficult it is, to flush out these predators and protect both those at risk, and those who have already been abused.
"Our hope is that our children can move on and enjoy the full lives they deserve, and that they aren't defined by this unimaginable trauma and burden that they will carry with them forever.
"We will never forgive and we never forget the horrific things this predator has done."
Acting Head of the Northern Ireland Public Prosecution Service's Serious Crime Unit Catherine Kierans said the case was one of the "most depraved, distressing and prolific cases of child sexual abuse" ever seen in the public prosecution service,
She said in a statement: "He has caused immeasurable damage to children and their families,
"The bravery of the young victims has been an inspiration to everyone who worked on this case.
"His conviction sends a message to other abusers, your actions have dire consequences, and there is nowhere to hide from the justice system.
"My most important message is to children and young people - If someone is threatening you by demanding sexual images or videos, this is a crime, you are not to blame in any way, please talk to a trusted adult.
"To all parents and grandparents and anyone who cares for children, please speak to the young people in your life about the danger of talking to strangers online."
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