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International Business Times UK

Ria Pathak

UK Grooming Crisis Deepens: TikTok Predator Gets 9 Years for Assaulting Schoolgirl While National Inquiry Hits Roadblocks

TikTok United Kingdom Michael Maher Nigel Leary Sir Keir Starmer Police NCA

A Scottish man has been jailed for nine years for grooming and sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl he met on TikTok. (Credit: Pixabay)

A Scottish man who groomed and sexually assaulted a 12-year-old girl he met on TikTok has been jailed for nine years, as public concern grows over the UK's handling of child exploitation cases.

Gary Shields, 37, was admitted to raping a child under 13 and meeting a child after grooming. The offences began when Shields, posing as a 19-year-old online, started communicating with the girl, complimenting her and assuring her they could 'make it work' despite her age.

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