A British paedophile on Wednesday faced a life sentence after admitting a string of sex attacks on children as young as six months, some from poor Christian families in Malaysia.
Richard Huckle, 30, took pictures and video footage of himself abusing the children which he uploaded to the dark web -- a hard to access part of the Internet often used for illegal activity.
Investigators found over 20,000 indecent images on his computer, while Huckle also kept a ledger of his attacks and wrote a manual called "Paedophiles And Poverty: Child Lover Guide".
Graphic details of dozens of sexual offences by Huckle emerged for the first time Wednesday as his sentencing hearing started in London.
Huckle, faced a total of 91 charges including against 23 children in Kuala Lumpur, where he set himself up as an English teacher.
His victims were aged between six months and 12 years and the offences were committed between 2006 and 2014.
Prosecutor Brian O'Neill said the abuse often included taking photographs of children and putting them online.
"Those images of child abuse will inevitably have been shared with other paedophiles and therefore been the subject of uncontrolled worldwide distribution," O'Neill added.
Huckle was arrested at London Gatwick airport in December 2014 as he came home to Britain from Malaysia for Christmas.
He initially denied all 91 charges but later admitted 71 of them during a string of further hearings. The charges include 14 counts of rape and 31 of sexual assault.
Judge Peter Rook has said he was considering a life sentence in the case, which he said was one of "exceptional gravity".
Huckle, of Ashford in southeast England, was appearing at London's Central Criminal Court, also known as the Old Bailey, for a sentencing hearing expected to conclude on Friday.
Reporting of the case was restricted until now because investigators wanted to make sure victims were safe from other online sexual predators.
AFP
Wed Jun 01 2016
Richard Huckle faced a life sentence after admitting a string of sex attacks on children, some from poor Christian families in Malaysia.
Debut Sukan Olimpik 'langkah besar' dalam karier Nurul Izzah Izzati
Bintang muda berbasikal trek negara Nurul Izzah Izzati Mohd Asri menyifatkan penampilan sulungnya pada Sukan Olimpik 2024 di Paris sebagai 'langkah besar' dalam kariernya.
Raja Salman jalani pemeriksaan kesihatan di Hospital Jeddah
Pemeriksaan itu yang diadakan pada Rabu (24 April), dijangka berlangsung beberapa jam.
Dua maut kereta terbabas dan terbalik di Kuala Krai
Kedua-dua mangsa tidak sedarkan diri dan mangsa tersepit berjaya dibawa keluar dari kereta pada jam 4.11 petang.
Penganjuran Hari Perpaduan di sekolah bantu tingkat persefahaman antara kaum - Saraswathy
Penganjuran Hari Perpaduan di sekolah menjadi platform terbaik untuk meningkatkan semangat perpaduan dalam kalangan pelajar sekolah, kata Timbalan Menteri Perpaduan Negara K. Saraswathy.
MITI: RM58.91 juta diagihkan kepada PKS pada suku pertama bagi automasi dan pemodenan
Jumlah peruntukan bagi pinjaman mudah itu ialah RM150 juta untuk 30 syarikat dalam sektor pembuatan dan perkhidmatan berkaitan pembuatan.
2,214 stesen pengecas EV dipasang, MITI kekal sasaran 10,000 menjelang 2025
Ia sebahagian komitmen MITI untuk membangunkan infrastruktur pengecasan EV dan mencapai sasaran 10,000 titik pengecasan menjelang 2025.
Harimau Muda kurang 'kerja rumah' hadapi Piala Asia B-23 2024 - Penganalisis
Menerusi pemerhatian di laman media sosial, timbul cakap-cakap netizen yang lebih terarah kepada perjalanan kesemua pemain negara kendalian Juan Torres Garrido ke Qatar sekadar 'makan angin'.
UMNO aktifkan 'war room' bantu calon Kerajaan Perpaduan - Ahmad
Ahmad berkata UMNO juga akan melaksanakan kempen bagi membantu calon berkenaan dengan bersungguh-sungguh.
Pelepasan air terawat Fukushima digantung kerana terputus elektrik
Pelepasan air radioaktif terawat ke laut dari loji janakuasa nuklear Fukushima yang lumpuh digantung pada Rabu berikutan gangguan bekalan elektrik separa, kata pengendali loji itu.
Prabowo rasmi diisytihar Presiden Indonesia
Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya Umum (KPU) secara rasmi akan mengisytiharkan Prabowo Subianto sebagai Presiden Indonesia dipilih, dalam satu majlis pada Rabu, seperti yang dijadualkan.