North Carolina man flew to Wales to meet girl he groomed online

A man who travelled from the US to Wales to “marry” a 15-year-old girl he groomed online has been sentenced to more than seven years in prison.

Jacob Ewing, 44, of Wildcat Pound Road, Hubert, North Carolina, forced the Welsh teenager to perform “degrading” acts on herself and to watch him perform sex acts.

He was arrested on his arrival at Cardiff Airport last year.

Ewing was sentenced at Newport Crown Court to seven years and eight months after admitting a wide range of offences.

These included six counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, two of attempting to cause a child to watch a sexual act, and three of possessing indecent photographs of a child.

He also admitted possession of an article with a blade or point in a public place, and an offensive weapon.

Ewing travelled with wedding rings, and was also carrying a knife and a wooden cosh.

Judge Celia Hughes said the two met online, where Ewing told the girl he was a “paedophile hunter” and a Christian.

He convinced her to let him watch her fall asleep while they were live online, and in the morning told her he had performed a sex act while she slept.

The court heard the girl’s parents did not know who she was speaking to and she initially told them it was someone local and the same age as her.

Judge Hughes said: “He began to control her, being alternately kind and then unpleasant to her, including saying she shouldn’t sleep covered up at night, even when she was cold.

“At one point she saw that the defendant had her initials tattooed on his chest.”

Ewing showed her a firearm and made her watch him perform sex acts on himself more than 20 times, the court heard.

“She felt overwhelmed,” the judge added.

“The defendant said he would come to the UK as she was soon to be 16, so they could get married and have children.

“We know that he brought rings with him when he came to the airport.”

The judge said the girl and her family have been “devastated” by Ewing’s actions.

Sentencing Ewing, she said: “You have portrayed yourself as the victim and haven’t taken responsibility for your actions.

“It is very fortunate that you were stopped at the airport.”

The court heard Ewing may be deported during his sentence but that this was a matter for the Home Office.

After the hearing, Det Supt Philip O’Connell of Gwent Police said Ewing had been “grooming and exploiting” his victim for more than a year “before travelling thousands of miles to meet her”.

He said a collaborative effort with US authorities and the UK Border Force meant officers arrested him at Cardiff Airport “before he was able to cause any physical harm to the victim”.

“However, his actions driven by his sexual gratification and the fear he imposed on his victim, will have a profound impact,” he added.

He said the force welcomed the sentence and encouraged “anyone who may think they are a victim of grooming or exploitation to come forward”.