A baby-faced couple who used an online chat site to facilitate child sex offences have been jailed.
Nick Barrett, 23, and Summer Andrew, 23, wept in the dock as they were jailed for a combined total of 15 years.
Officers from the Police Online Investigation Team (POLIT) launched an investigation in December 2021 after gaining information about Andrew and Barrett’s involvement in sexual activities involving children online.
Further investigation revealed that the couple had filmed themselves having sex in exchange for watching live footage of a four-year-old boy being abused.
The pair were jailed for a total of 15 years after it was revealed they used an online chat site to facilitate child sex offences.
Andrew, from Clacton, was charged with arranging to commit a child sexual offence.
The couple was arrested and charged on June 29, 2022.
Barrett, of Harwich, was charged with engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child and arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence.
Andrew, from Clacton, was charged with arranging to commit a child sexual offence.
Barrett pleaded guilty to both offenses and was sentenced to 12 years, of which at least 7 will be in prison.
During the trial, Barrett was described as lacking “insight into his sexual concerns” and posing “a real risk of sexual harm to children in the future”.
“Both defendants effectively negotiated and live-streamed their sexual activity in exchange for a child being abused,” prosecutor Nicola May said.
“The stranger was excited by what was shown to him and was encouraged to have sexual relations.”
Andrew pleaded not guilty but following a trial at Chelmsford Crown Court he was found guilty on 11 April 2024.
She was sentenced to three years in prison and both were given a sexual harm prevention order and an indefinite mandatory notification order.
Judge Morgan told Andrew he was sure she “knew you were going to engage in sexual activity” and that he was sure she would have been able to see and did see the screen showing a child being sexually abused.
“This crime is so serious that only a prison sentence can be justified,” the judge told him.
“It’s possible that none of the videos or contact was made on your phone, but the difficulty I face is if you are released and you find yourself involved in the same kind of relationship as you were with Barrett.”
Barrett, of Harwich, was charged with engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a minor and arranging or facilitating the commission of a sexual offense against a minor. He pleaded guilty to both offenses and was sentenced to 12 years in prison, at least seven of them in jail.
Andrew, from Clacton, was charged with arranging to commit a child sex offence. She pleaded not guilty but was found guilty after a trial and sentenced to three years in prison.
Investigating officer Detective Sergeant Nicola Hadfield said: ‘The tireless work of our officers has succeeded in protecting other children from harm at the hands of Barrett and Andrew.
‘The two will now be registered as sex offenders, meaning they will have indefinite reporting requirements and every interaction with any child in the future will be monitored.
‘These crimes took place on the former online chat site Omegle, which allowed users to video chat with randomly selected users.
‘Omegle shut down after 14 years in November 2023 following multiple investigations into child abuse attributed to the site.
“It is a positive development to see a major online platform taking responsibility for crimes that may occur on its site.”
Essex Police’s POLIT team has recently been confirmed to be the best in the country at securing charges in relation to online child abuse investigations.
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