Paedophile 'adviser' on dark web jailed for 17 years

Colin Thackeray was a high-ranking moderator on dark web site who offered advice on sexual of boys

A 62-year-old paedophile who offered online advice on grooming and sexually abusing children has been jailed for 17 years.

Colin Thackeray, from Peterborough, was a high-ranking moderator on a site on the dark web that discussed the sexual abuse of boys.

He was also linked to more than 2,000 indecent images of children, which included 350 in Category A, which are the most severe.

National Crime Agency (NCA) officers arrested Thackeray in September 2019 at his home and found chat logs on his laptop.

He was sentenced to 10 years in prison at Luton Crown Court and will also have an extended licence period of seven years and a lifetime sexual harm prevention order.

Thackeray pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children and one count of possessing indecent images at the court in July 2022.

He also pleaded guilty to a count of intentionally assisting the distribution of indecent images of children in July 2024 and was further convicted by a jury of two counts of intentionally encouraging the sexual assault of a child under 13 and one count of attempting to incite a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity.

NCA officers said Thackeray had communicated directly with a user he believed to be a 10-year-old child, repeatedly requesting they send him sexualised images of themselves.

Spencer Davies from the NCA said: “Colin Thackeray was extremely active on the dark web, encouraging others to commit offences against children whilst also sharing photos of the worst abuse possible.

“Thackeray was a high-ranking and valued member in the chat rooms he used, and the chat logs we recovered proved he was a significant threat to children.

“Protecting children is a top priority of the NCA, and we will continue to pursue offenders like Thackery who put them at risk.”