A MAN who carried out a series of online sexual offences against children across Britain has been sent to prison. Matthew Reilly, 39, from Halesowen, was sentenced to nine years at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to a total of 34 sex offences in February. During their investigation, West Midlands Police identified 40 victims who lived in 27 different force areas within England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
"Matthew Reilly is a dangerous sexual predator who exploited and abused children online," said Detective Constable Jack Dobbinson. "He did so under the guise of a much younger person in order to gain their trust — a trust he betrayed in the most appalling fashion." An investigation into registered sex offender Reilly began in January last year after police discovered an indecent image of a child had been uploaded to Snapchat.
After the image was traced to an account linked to Reilly, he was arrested and his electronic devices were seized for analysis. When interviewed, Reilly admitted to messaging girls on Snapchat and that some of the conversations he had with them had turned sexual. He was conditionally bailed while police continued their enquires, during which time his devices were forensically examined.
Investigators found indecent images of children on his phone, along with details of a Snapchat account Reilly had been using to pose as a 15-year-old boy. Further analysis revealed that the account had been sexually communicating wi.