US-based military officer, Christopher Ernest Fox, jailed for fifteen years for grooming an unidentified 12-year-old British schoolgirl from over 6,500 miles away in the UK.

Ernest Fox pleaded guilty to cyber-stalking and sexually exploiting the British youngster from all the way in his army barracks in Hawaii.

Ernest Fox was put on the investigator's radar in 2015 when the girl reported to the police that she had been manipulated into sending nude pictures of herself over the internet, after being approached by Fox on Instagram and Snapchat.





A police spokesperson said:

"She submitted various items for forensic analysis."

"This allowed Special Agent In Charge, Siave Iafeta, to obtain an arrest and search warrant for Fox at his address at Schofield Barracks, Waikiki."

"Fox was found in possession of the indecent images of the young girl and images of extreme child pornography on his computer devices."

Hawaii News Now reported:

"When Fox first met the victim through Instagram and Snapchat, he knew that she was only 12 years old when he began to ask her for sexually explicit photos."

"Fox then used the explicit photos as blackmail for more pictures. If she refused, he threatened to show the photos to her friends and family."

In addition to the minimum of 15 years in jail, a further ten years of strict sanctions was added plus a mandatory $10,000 compensation to be paid to the victim and her family by the disgraced soldier.





Det Con Martyn Cole, from Melksham CID, who traveled to Hawaii while investigating and building a case against Ernest Fox said:

"This was a very unusual case due to the geographic distance between the abuser and his victim."

"However, it proves that we will not let these hurdles dissuade us from pursuing justice."

"With good international working relationships between law enforcement agencies, we will make sure these types of criminals are tracked down and punished."

"I would also like to applaud the bravery of the young victim, who has shown strength and courage beyond her years."