MORE than 300 online sex crimes will take place against children every month in the South West, NSPCC research indicates.
The charity's analysis of new Home Office crime data found a tenfold increase in online child sexual abuse offences recorded by police in England and Wales over the last decade.
The warning comes after a series of disturbing cases of online grooming of children by sex offenders in Devon, including repeat offender Matthew McKay, who had previously been caught in a sting but managed to evade monitoring by buying a mobile phone he had kept secret from police.
The data shows 42,503 Obscene Publication (Child Abuse Image) and Sexual Grooming crimes were logged in the year to March - up from 3,706 just ten years ago. In 2021/22, police forces in the South West recorded 3,723 of these offences the equivalent of 310 per month.
This story is from the August 01, 2022 edition of The Herald.
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This story is from the August 01, 2022 edition of The Herald.
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