A dangerous predator who posed as a teenage boy to exploit young girls online has been jailed for 20 years following a Sussex Police investigation.
Kevin Wyeth, 39, formerly of Eastbourne but of no fixed address, created a mobile phone account to manipulate and pressure girls under the age of 13 into sending explicit images and videos. Posing as a peer, Wyeth used bullying tactics and threats — including promises to find and rape his victims — to coerce them into sexual activity over group chat messages.
The Online Child Abuse Team (OCAT) identified four young victims, who have all received specialist support from trained officers. One victim said, “He made me feel like I could not talk to anybody.”
Police located Wyeth at a flat in Eastbourne, where they seized a mobile phone that was later found to contain indecent content. Despite refusing to provide the device’s PIN, forensic investigations linked the phone to Wyeth’s disturbing online activity.
At Lewes Crown Court on Friday, 2 May, Wyeth was sentenced to 20 years — comprising 15 years in prison and five additional years on licence under an extended sentence. He had previously been remanded in custody following an October 2024 hearing at Brighton Magistrates’ Court.
Wyeth was convicted of 35 offences, including:
- 7 counts of distributing indecent images
- 10 counts of making indecent images
- 5 counts of engaging in sexual communications with a child
- 1 count of attempting to engage in sexual communication
- 3 breaches of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO)
- 3 counts of inciting girls under 13 to engage in sexual activity, including one count of penetrative activity
- 2 counts of threatening to disclose private sexual images
- 3 counts of malicious communications
Wyeth is a repeat offender, with previous convictions in 2018 and 2020 for similar crimes, and a 2023 prison sentence for breaching his SHPO.
The court heard how his actions caused severe emotional distress, fear, and long-term trauma among the victims and their families. One parent described him as a “prolific child predator” and said, “The trust we had in the online world has been shattered.”
Detective Constable Gary Baker, of the OCAT team, said:
“Wyeth preyed on the fears of the girls to commit his crimes. He is a danger to children and has repeatedly ignored the law. His actions have caused lasting harm.”
Police urge anyone affected by sexual offences to report it via the Sussex Police website.
