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Details of a soldier's sordid transatlantic web of abuse have been released by the detective who exposed him.

Josh Boynton-Eckles pursued girls from across the world, including some aged just 12.

He begged 80 girls across four countries for photos, engaged in sexual chats with them and even posed as a woman to con those who he was speaking to.

The 24-year-old pleaded guilty to five counts of inciting sexual activity with three girls aged between 13 and 15, making and distributing indecent images of a child and fraud by false representation.

He appeared at Hull Crown Court on Tuesday where he was sentenced to 20 months imprisonment, suspended for two years

Detective Constable James Salamon, who led the case, said the examination of his mobile phone and apps was "incredibly exhaustive" with thousands of images discovered.

He said over 80 teenage girls from all over the world were identified as being in contact with him and 85 indecent images of young teenage girls from the UK, Germany, USA and Canada, were found on his mobile phone.

“This was an extensive investigation of a predatory sex offender who posed a real threat to young teenage girls," he said.

“The case relates to offences that took place in July and August 2016 when Boynton-Eckles made contact with a number of teenage girls via online apps, engaging them in inappropriate, sexual chats and sending naked images of himself, while also requesting indecent images in return, despite knowing their ages.

“The examination of his mobile phone and apps was incredibly exhaustive with thousands of images discovered and the equivalent of 15,000 pages of data examined to identify as many victims as possible.

“Over 80 teenage girls from all over the world were identified as being in contact with him and 85 indecent images of young teenage girls from the UK, Germany, USA and Canada, were found on his mobile phone.

“Extensive enquiries resulted in a number of the girls being identified, with any under the age of 18 where it was possible, spoken to by officers with safeguarding put in place and support and care also made available for them.

"The information was also shared with various law enforcement organisations in other countries.”

In court on Tuesday, his Honour Judge Tremberg described Boynton-Eckles as having carried out an "indiscriminate and predatory course of conduct" by targeting young girls online.

He also said that Boynton-Eckles was “every parent’s worst nightmare” when referring to his activity.

DC Salamon said: “I want to thank everyone who spoke to us as part of the investigation, and to those who provided evidence in this case I want to praise them for their courage in coming forward and helping with the investigation and the prosecution process.

“The Sexual Harm Prevention Order will provide a means for us to monitor Boynton-Eckles and his actions, and should there be any evidence of offending in the next two-years, he could potentially be sent to prison to serve the 20-month sentence.

“We would always encourage anyone who has been a victim of similar activity or behaviour, whether in person or online, to please come forward and report what has happened to them, as we will always take reports of this nature seriously and do all we can to bring offenders before the courts.”

Hull Live reported on the sentencing and told how Boynton-Eckles sent naked pictures of himself to girls under the age of 16, images of bondage equipment and cartoons of adults spanking.

In conversation with one victim, aged 13 and 14 at the time, he “discussed kissing and touching her bottom when they met”.

The 24-year-old also admitted to using the identity of another woman on anonymous chat site so he could encourage gay or bisexual women to send him naked pictures.

His offending first came to light when the mothers of two of his victims contacted police after they found indecent images on their daughters' phones.

Watch: Hull criminals jailed in January 2020

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At the time, Boynton-Eckles was around 20-years-old and serving in the armed forces stationed in Thirsk, North Yorkshire.

A police investigation found he contacted a number of girls aged between 12 and 17 online from around the world.

In another conversation, again with a girl of a similar age, he discussed having sex with her and sent her an image of bondage equipment laid out on a bed.

Ms Holmes said: "He regularly chatted to females using various online applications. He would repeatedly ask for images.

"He was not deterred by age or vulnerability and would in fact use their vulnerability to get the images he wanted."

Boynton-Eckles also encouraged a 15-year-old girl to send him naked pictures on Whatsapp and made references to taking her virginity.

In a victim impact statement, one of his victims said she felt “a lot of shame” after her encounter with Boynton-Eckles saying it made her “feel stupid and worthless”.

Boynton-Eckles also stood in the dock to be sentenced for one count of fraud after he admitted to using the identity of another woman on the anonymous social media app Whisper.

Ms Holmes told the court: “Examination of the Whisper app chat records showed he used a woman’s image on a number of occasions and pretended to be her by name or without a name.

“There are 20 examples of the defendant using her identity in order to obtain sexual chat and or pictures and two specific examples are when he exchanged naked pictures of the woman with the person he is speaking to.”

Boynton-Eckles was also sentenced for one count of making an indecent photograph of a child and distributing a photograph of a child, after police found 59 category C images on his mobile phone.

He must complete 15 days rehabilitation activity requirement, be a registered sex offender for the next ten years and adhere to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.