Prolific paedophile lied about age and 'threatened to kill' young girl if she didn't send naked pictures

A prolific paedophile lied about his age to trick young girls into sending naked pictures of themselves - even threatening to kill one of his victims if she didn't comply with his demands.

John Riley, 34, who has an 'unhealthy interest in young girls' blamed his cocaine habit after using social media to target 10 and 11-year-old girls online, the ECHO reports.

Riley, of HMP Liverpool, formerly of Anfield, appeared at Liverpool Crown Court on Friday (April 28) via video link after pleading guilty to 18 sexual offences relating to two separate cases.

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He was caught out when one concerned mum saw the name 'JJ Smith', that she did not recognise, on her 11-year-old daughter's mobile phone where it was revealed they had been talking on social media.

Arthur Gibson, prosecuting, told the court that after confronting her daughter in 2019, in Cumbria, the child confirmed that she had been added on Facebook messenger by the defendant, and had told him she was 13 or 14-years-old, and he said he was 14 or 15-years-old.

Mr Gibson said: “This defendant must have been trawling the internet looking for young girls to contact.”

Riley gave the girl his personal phone number and they continued to talk on WhatsApp, including discussions about their sexual experiences. Riley sent the girl an image of his penis and asked her to send videos and images of herself committing sexual acts back, which she did.

When spoken to by police, the 11-year-old victim told police that Riley had threatened to kill her if she did not send the images and videos, and that he told her “he knew about her and where she lived”. The victim’s mother called the police in Cumbria, who determined