'Grooming gangs put all young girls at risk'

Shock warning from lawyer over 'next generation' of offenders

- PAUL JEEVES

EVERY young girl in Britain is at risk from grooming gangs who constantly change their behaviour to avoid police detection, a lawyer who has spent 20 years defending paedophiles has warned.

Marcus Johnstone specialises in sexual offence and exploitation cases but says the traditional model of grooming gangs - men targeting vulnerable girls in town centres has become far more sinister because the next generation "learn and adapt" from previous offenders caught by the authorities.

And while previous-style cases still exist, the lawyer says the predatory behaviour has shifted dramatically online, meaning it is not just vulnerable girls in care who are at most risk but "any girl, from any background with a smartphone in her bedroom".

Mr Johnstone said: "The internet has become the primary facilitator for modern grooming gangs.

"Predators are no longer limited by geography. They utilise encrypted apps and dark web forums to operate with near impunity.

"They are using apps like Telegram and Kik, that allow for encrypted communication which police simply struggle to intercept." The lawyer, who has represented grooming gang offenders across the UK, originally began his work in Manchester but soon found he was overwhelmed with cases spreading across the North into West Yorkshire.