A former police officer who used the Snapchat platform to contact minors and take sexual photos in their school uniforms has been sentenced to life in prison for failing to show remorse in front of his more than 200 victims.
“These are extremely serious crimes and the defendant is a frequent offender. […] “It is clear that he not only obtained sexual gratification but also enjoyed the power he had over young girls,” said Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke at Cardiff Court, describing the perpetrator as “cruel and sadistic,” according to The Independent “. “.
Lewis Edwards, 24, was given a life sentence with no chance of release for 12 years after more than 4,500 indecent images of children aged between 10 and 16 were found in his possession, the British newspaper reported on Wednesday.
Between November 2020 and his arrest in February 2023, the man posed as a 14-year-old teenager on Snapchat in order to obtain sexual images of his victims, which he then threatened to share if they did not comply with his demands.
At the same time, the pedophile joined the ranks of South Wales Police in January 2021 and allegedly used his status to target one of them he encountered in the course of his duties.
“We cannot understand how someone who was there to protect you could do this. The grin he gave us in court shows he has no remorse. “I don’t think he can, wants or even cares about the impact he has had on his victims,” the mother of one of the victims testified in court.
One said she was so traumatized she slept with a hammer under her pillow, while the man allegedly threatened another to shoot her parents or blow up her house if she stopped sending him pictures, it was heard the court.
According to The Independent, the man pleaded guilty to 161 charges, including extortion and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.