UK: Former UK teacher jailed for 12 years for abusing children in India

The former deputy head teacher of a London primary school who pleaded guilty to paying and instructing teenagers to abuse young children in India was sentenced to 12 years in prison on Wednesday.

Matthew Smith, 35, from East Dulwich in south London, was arrested by Britain's National Crime Agency (NCA) in November last year after investigators found he was sharing abusive material on the dark web and is now being held at Southwark Crown Court London Sentenced in

According to the NCA, Smith was online at the time of his arrest, talking to a teenage boy living in India and asking him to send sexual images of a young child in exchange for money. Dark web sites and forums were also open on his computer which were dealing with child sexual abuse.

Senior NCA officer Helen Dorey said, "Matthew Smith is a criminal and master manipulator who, on his part, coerced youths into abusing children."

They said, "It is clear that Smith has absolutely no empathy for his victims and the harm he has caused. He poses a very real and significant risk to children, but this investigation has ensured That he will have to spend a long time in jail."

Smith is also subject to an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order and has been placed on the sex offenders' register for life. The NCA stressed that it remains committed to working with global partners, both online and overseas, to ensure children are protected and criminals like Smith are brought to justice.

The agency's investigators interrogated chat logs and financial transactions and were able to establish that Smith paid a total of GBP 65,398 to the same teen and another teen living in India for abusing children over a period of 5 years.

Chat logs revealed that Smith instructed youths to perform sexual acts with boys and sent them pictures and videos as examples.