Uncovering a Predator

Twenty-year-old Alexander McCartney, already known to police, is arrested and his devices seized after a 12-year-old girl in Scotland reports a serious catfishing abuse incident online. McCartney gives a ‘no comment’ interview while in custody, and without enough physical evidence to charge him, he is released on bail.

Back home at his parents’ house, McCartney’s bail conditions are supposed to prevent him from using devices that can connect to the internet. Meanwhile, a second report comes in to the police about another catfishing abuse victim linked to online activity from McCartney’s home address. This time, it involves a young girl in New Zealand.

As the police continue to gather up enough physical evidence to charge McCartney, the Cyber Crime Centre completes the analysis of one of his devices, revealing a prolific online predator at a scale never before seen by police in Northern Ireland.