Northern Ireland's justice minister says many victims will be 'terrified' and feel 'guilty'. But Naomi Long says she wants children to find the courage to tell someone.
About 3,500 children believed to have been abused by a 'dangerous, relentless, cruel paedophile' are being encouraged to come forward. Warning: This article contains references to suicide and child sex abuse which readers may find distressing. Northern Ireland's justice minister Naomi Long has been commenting on Alexander McCartney - one of the world's most prolific online offenders - who was jailed for at least 20 years on Friday in Belfast.
' During McCartney's trial, Belfast Crown Court heard victims were aged between 10 and 16 and based in the UK, USA, continental Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Prosecutors said he posed as someone else online - known as catfishing - then 'degraded and humiliated' his victims. Devices seized from his bedroom contained thousands of indecent photographs and videos of underage girls.
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