Cyber-flashing 'not a joke', warns CPS prosecutor

Hannah von Dadelszen said cyber-flashing was a "serious act... it needs to be dealt with"

A senior prosecutor has warned cyber-flashers who expose themselves online that their behaviour is "not a joke".

Hannah von Dadelszen said the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) would look to bring those committing sexual offences on the internet to justice.

Nicholas Hawkes, from Essex, became the first person in England and Wales to be sentenced under new laws.

Ms von Dadelszen said the legislation helped create parity between flashing in real life and in the digital sphere.

She hailed "very speedy justice" after Hawkes, 39, was jailed for just over 15 months at Southend Crown Court on Tuesday.

Hawkes admitted two offences of sending a photograph of genitals to cause alarm, distress or humiliation after he sent unsolicited photos of his erect penis to a 15-year-old girl and a woman in February.

Nicholas Hawkes was sentenced to 52 weeks in jail for the cyber-flashing offences and 14 additional weeks for breaches of previous court orders

Ms von Dadelszen, deputy chief crown prosecutor for the East of England, said: "This is a serious act; it's not a joke and it needs to be dealt with.

"If this happened to someone walking down the street it would be considered a criminal offence, and it's also a criminal offence online."

Hawkes was the first person to be convicted of the new offence of cyber-flashing in England and Wales after the Online Safety Act came into effect on 31 January.

Cyber-flashing on dating apps, AirDrop and other platforms would result in perpetrators facing up to two years behind bars where it was done to gain sexual gratification, or to cause alarm, distress or humiliation, the government said.

It has been an offence in Scotland, which has a separate legal system, for more than a decade.

The courts can also impose a Sexual Harm Prevention Order upon an offender under the legislation.

In the case of Hawkes, one of his victims took screenshots of the image he sent on WhatsApp and reported Hawkes to Essex Police the same day

"This is going to be a really important tool in a prosecutor's toolkit," Ms von Dadelszen said.

"It just gives the prosecution another string to its bow in terms of offending in the digital space.

"We would really encourage any victims of this type of offending to come forward and report it to the police."