Child sex offender who posed as girl jailed
Cumbria PoliceA man who posed as a teenage girl online has been jailed for 26 child sex offences, which police say he went to "great lengths to hide".
Ryan Cruden, 25, of Egremont, was arrested in May 2024 after an external law enforcement agency contacted police to report indecent images being accessed at his home, Cumbria Police said.
Cruden used a photo messaging app to ask his victims - aged eight to 14-years-old - to send indecent images, the force said.
He was sentenced at Carlisle Crown Court on Thursday to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to offences including sexual communication with a child, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, and making and distributing indecent images.
Cruden was also put on the sex offenders register for his crimes, which police say were committed against 20 victims between 2022 and 2024.
Det Con Sarah Aiston said Cruden "poses a significant risk to children".
"He went to great lengths to conceal his offending, posing behind a fake account, pretending to be a teenage girl with the sole purpose of inciting children to engage in sexual activity, coercing them into sending indecent images of themselves and communicating with them in a sexual manner," she said.
"Cruden then distributed the images he received of the children to other people and used these images to cause further harm."
She went on to thank the victims "for their courage in speaking to the police" and to their families who supported the investigation.