A 44-year-old American man who flew to Wales to “marry” a teenage girl he had groomed online has been sentenced to more than seven years in prison.
Jacob Ewing, 44, of Wildcat Pound Road, Hubert, North Carolina, forced a young girl from the Gwent area of Wales to perform “degrading” acts on herself and watch him masturbate online.
As the girl – who cannot be named for legal reasons – was turning 16, he flew to the UK to be with her, bringing wedding rings.
Ewing was arrested at Cardiff Airport, with a number of paedophilic images in his possession, including one of a baby being raped.
He was also carrying a knife and a wooden cosh.
On Tuesday, Judge Celia Hughes jailed Ewing for seven years and eight months at Newport Crown Court.
In total, he was sentenced for 13 offences, including causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.
The court heard Ewing may be deported during his sentence but that this is a matter for the British Home Office.
The two met online using a video chat site that connects users by random, where he told the girl he was a “paedophile hunter” and a Christian.
He convinced her to let him watch her fall asleep while they were on a livestream, and in the morning told her he had masturbated while she slept.
While she told the police she had been disturbed by this, she kept in contact with the defendant.
Over the following months, he began to control her life.
The court heard the girl’s parents did not know who she was speaking to, and she initially told them she was chatting to someone local and of her age.
Judge Hughes said: “He began to control her, being alternately kind and then unpleasant to her, including saying she shouldn’t sleep covered up at night, even when she was cold.
“At one point she saw that the defendant had her initials tattooed on his chest.”
Ewing also showed her a firearm.
The judge said he “directed her behaviour online” and made her watch him perform sex acts on himself more than 20 times.
“She felt overwhelmed. Unfortunately, she did not speak to her parents about this,” she said.
“The defendant said he would come to the UK as she was soon to be 16, so they could get married and have children.
“We know that he brought rings with him when he came to the airport.”
The police were tipped off about Ewing by the US authorities, and the girl’s parents were informed.
Judge Hughes said: “A sheath knife and a wooden cosh were found in the defendant’s luggage on arrival at the airport – I really fear to what use the defendant might have put those weapons bearing in mind he was planning to meet a teenage girl he had groomed and controlled.”
The judge said the girl and her family have been “devastated” by Ewing’s actions.
He had insisted to probation officers that he had “permission” from the girl’s mother to act as he did.
Sentencing Ewing, the judge said: “You have portrayed yourself as the victim and haven’t taken responsibility for your actions.”
She added, “It is very fortunate that you were stopped at the airport.”
Speaking after sentencing, detective superintendent Philip O’Connell of Gwent Police said: “Ewing struck up a relationship with a 15-year-old girl online, grooming and exploiting her for over a year before travelling thousands of miles to meet her.
“Working closely with US authorities and UK Border Force he was detained at Cardiff Airport before being arrested and interviewed by our officers.
“The collaboration between agencies meant Ewing was intercepted before he was able to cause any physical harm to the victim.
“However, his actions, driven by his sexual gratification and the fear he imposed on his victim, will have a profound impact.
“We’d like to commend the victim in this case, who’s shown strength and great fortitude throughout the investigation and hope that today’s sentence helps in processing and moving forward with her life.”
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can contact Women’s Aid (24-hour freephone helpline at 1800-341 900, email helpline@womensaid.ie) or Men’s Aid Ireland (confidential helpline at 01-554 3811, email hello@mensaid.ie) for support and information.
Safe Ireland also offers a number of local services and helplines at safeireland.ie/get-help/where-to-find-help/. In the case of an emergency, always dial 999/112.
You can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help.
