Paedophile jailed for manipulating children to perform sexual acts online

A paedophile has been jailed for 11 years for a catalogue of over 50 offences against victims as young as 10 years old.

Alex Tindal, 31, was identified by South Wales Police’s Online Investigation Team and pleaded guilty to a total of 53 offences.

Tindal, who mostly used snapchat to commit his offences, was found guilty of possessing hundreds of indecent images of children and caused children, as young as 10 years old to engage in sexual activity.

He would then blackmail them, threatening to disclose the videos and photos publicly.

Images

Tindal managed to manipulate his young victims into sending sexual images and videos of themselves.

He quickly managed to gain their trust before threatening to send the images to their friends and family if they did not continue to submit to his sexual demands.

The Bridgend man had over thirty victims across the UK as well as abroad in Germany, USA and Ireland.

Tindal came to police attention following referral received from a child in Northern Ireland. He was arrested by South Wales Police in September 2022 and was remanded into custody

The victim reported receiving threats from Tindal after refusing to send him sexual imagery. Simultaneously, South Wales Police received a report from the National Crime Agency, identifying that child sexual abuse material had been uploaded to the internet at Tindal’s former Swansea home.

Following a search of Tindal’s home, several devices including mobile phones, computers and hard drives were seized and examined, and the scale of his offending became apparent.

Evidence

Officer in case, Detective Constable Martin Charles said: “This is one of the largest cases our team has worked on, and the strength of evidence gathered gave Tindal no other option but to plead guilty.

“I am thankful for the other police forces across the UK and abroad who supported the investigation as well as our Digital Forensic Unit in identifying victims ensuring we can safeguard them from further harm. Most of all, I am grateful for the bravery shown by Tindal’s victims across the UK for talking to the Police and helping to put him where he belongs beyond harm’s way.

“Alex Tindal’s crimes are of the most sinister and predatory offences seen as most of the victims’ families were completely unaware of the abuse being perpetrated. The online world is an integral part of a child’s life but is often hidden from close family and those who would intervene to help a child if they fell victim to this particular type of crime.”