The father of two of Alexander McCartney’s victims has said he will never forgive the Northern Ireland catfishing predator for abusing his young daughters.
McCartney catfished the man's eldest daughter and coerced her into sending him intimate pictures around 2017.
He then used the pictures to blackmail her into involving her younger sister, who was 10 at the time.
26-year-old Alexander McCartney from Newry, County Armagh will serve at least 20 years in prison following sentencing at Belfast Crown Court yesterday.
Alexander McCartneyThe New Zealand father of two, who does not want to be identified, said he doesn’t know how his daughters will ever move on.
“How do you move on from that? I just don't know how that's even possible, and how do you ever trust anyone again?” he said.
“Catfishing is scary – it's a scary world, and I just hate that she has to carry this burden with her.”
McCartney, a former computer science student, pleaded guilty to one count of manslaughter, 59 of blackmail, and 70 of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.
The manslaughter charge relates to the death of 12-year-old West Virginia girl Cimarron Thomas, who took her own life in May 2018.
He was sentenced to life in jail with a minimum term of 20 years as part of the largest case of catfishing the UK has ever seen.
Main image: Mugshot of Alexander McCartney. Picture by: PSNI.
