Catfishing victim urges young people to 'tell someone about abuse'

BBC News

a day ago

A teenager who was catfished by a prolific sex offender has urged other young victims not to be "embarrassed" and to tell someone they trust about the abuse.Immy, which is not her real name, was tricked into befriending Max Hollingsbee online. He went on to threaten her into providing naked images. Now 18, she was the first person to report his crimes to the police. Detectives went on to uncover 13 other girls and young women who he targeted. Hollingsbee, 21, from Lurgan, County Armagh, was jailed for five years for a litany of offences including causing children under 16 to engage in sexual activity.
His crimes fall into the broader field of online catfishing, where someone uses a false identity to gain the trust of a person before exploiting them.Hollingsbee was 17 when he started his campaign of abuse. He pretended to be a younger boy or girl when contacting other young people before blackmailing them. Immy was 15 when she was targeted. She recalled the "immediate panic" she felt when she realised she was being catfished. She had been educated about catfishing in school but didn't think it could happen to her."In the moment you're so stressed. So my immediate thought was leg it to my mum's room. "I just shoved the phone straight into my mum's hands and I went: 'Help. What do I do?'"And she then phoned the police."Although catfishing is not a specific crime in Northern Ireland, suspects can be prosecuted under other laws.
There are thousands of sexual offences against children reported in Northern Ireland every year.Figures released to BBC News NI though a Freedom of Information request show the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) made 478 arrests for sexual communication with a child between 2019 and 2024.During the same period, 175 people were convicted of sexual communications with a child.The PSNI also recorded 799 offences in 2024 relating to the taking, possessing, sharing or publishing of indecent images of children.
Alexander McCartney among NI 'catfish' cases
Max Hollingsbee is not the only "catfish" to have appeared in Northern Ireland's courts.Another young man from County Tyrone is awaiting sentencing on similar offences.And last October, Alexander McCartney was jailed for at least 20 years in what was described as the UK's largest catfishing case. He had abused thousands of children around the world and the extreme nature of his demands led to the death of a young girl in the United States. The case spurred the PSNI's new Trust Trap campaign, which uses footage from a BBC documentary on McCartney.According to PSNI Det Supt Jordan Piper "groomers like McCartney and Hollingsbee operate in a very similar way, concealing their identity online and pretending to be the same age as a child"."They use fake profile pictures, pretending to have similar interests to gain the trust of the child before steering the conversation to a sexual nature."
Prosecutors said the availability of social media means the stereotypical image of a child sex offender is changing.Catherine Kierans, acting director of the Public Prosection Service (PPS), said there had been a number of cases involving young males abusing children and young people online and that "trend seems to be continuing". "People have this image of paedophiles being creepy older men, but we are seeing younger and younger male offenders, perhaps because they have computer skills to follow through with their impulses."Ms Kierans urged parents to monitor their children's internet habits.
Ms Kierans said Hollingsbee, McCartney and the case in County Tyrone were not connected – but the crimes had common themes.All were teenagers when they began seeking out younger victims, many of the children they targeted lived abroad and they also used popular social media apps to find and abuse victims, including Snapchat and Wizz.
How does catfishing affect children?
Marcella Leonard, an expert in the assessment and treatment of sexual trauma, said this type of offending has evolved over time.She said that while the "recording of harm" is not new, the "diversity, breadth and capability of that technology, and how that has changed the type of harm" is.One of the "biggest lessons from McCartney" was the impact on children "being made to do things, to harm themselves, by being blackmailed", she added."But also when an image is being taken of that, they think about: 'Where is that photograph, who has got that, how many copies have been made?'"Immy was diagnosed with anxiety after her experience with Hollingsbee and missed out on school during her GCSE year.
What can parents do about catfishing?
The issue doesn't just impact teenagers, according to online safety expert Wayne Denner."I'm in primary schools three or four times a week," he said."Three or four years ago, it would have been mostly secondary schools."Mr Denner said abusers use online games, such as Roblox, Minecraft and Fortnite, as well as messaging apps, with more children "getting access to technology from a younger age". He said using technology "in the bedroom, with the door closed, is not a good idea" and urged grandparents, as well as parents, to educate themselves.
What can social media companies do about catfishing?
The Online Safety Act came into force across the UK on 25 July.Internet firms must now adopt measures including stricter age verification and identifying a person in their company "accountable for children's safety".A number of campaigners want to see even stricter rules for tech firms or social media bans for under-16s.A spokesperson for Wizz said the firm "takes the subject of catfishing very seriously and is fully committed to protecting our users". It referred BBC News NI to its online safety engagement policy.Snapchat said the sexual exploitation of any young person is horrific, illegal, and against its policies.Catherine Kierans acknowledged it takes bravery for young people, like Immy, to come forward."This type of behaviour is very compulsive and these offenders seek bigger and bigger hits. "They leave a footprint online that police can follow."Immy said she was grateful to her mum for contacting police."Even with the relationship I have with my parents, it's still a very embarrassing conversation to have to have."If you don't tell someone who can think rationally in a situation like that, it could have ended very, very differently for me, 100%."If you have been affected by the issues raised in this story you can visit the BBC Action Line for support.