Kent man jailed for directing the sexual abuse of children around the world
A Swanley man is beginning an extended jail sentence for the sexual abuse of children
A man from Kent has been sentenced to 13 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to directing the sexual abuse of young children around the world.
Matthew Bower, aged 52, from Swanley, was identified by National Crime Agency officers after information was received by the FBI that a man from the UK had been paying for images of a young girl being sexually abused.
Bower was jailed for 13 years after pleading guilty at Croydon Crown Court.
The victim, a 15 year old girl, spoke to police officers in the US in early August 2017 and told them she had been sexually abused by a female family member for a number of months.
She stated that the abuse was photographed and the images were being sent to a man in the UK for various sums of money.
Officers from the FBI arrested the woman and she provided them with an email address, username and Paypal details of the man she had taken the photographs for.
This information was sent to officers at the NCA who were able to identify Bower.
The woman had sent Bower 308 images of herself with the victim, as well as two ‘live-streamed’ videos between 2016 and 2017.
Financial records showed that over a six year period, Bower had sent her approximately £6,000, the majority in return for the abuse material.
On his arrest, NCA officers also found additional chat logs and online conversations where Bower was actively encouraging others to sexually abuse young children.
He initially told officers he had been the victim of hacking, but in October 2023, pleaded guilty to 15 offences.
Jen Cruickshank, Senior Investigating Officer at the NCA, said:
“Bower is clearly a dangerous individual who has a depraved sexual interest in children. For a significant period of time he actively sought people online – both adults and children – whom he could coerce into sending him abuse material for his sexual gratification.
“I’d like to pay tribute to the victims who bravely spoke about the abuse they had suffered. The initial victim report was the catalyst for this investigation and ultimately led to us being able to identify Bower and ensure further victims were safeguarded".