An online predator who pressured a boy 4,500 miles away into raping a toddler has been jailed for 18 years – while the teenager he groomed will serve 50 years in the United States.
Twisted Nicholas Hatton, who had a huge stash of child abuse images, took advantage of the boy from the age of 12, Chester Crown Court heard.
The teenager, who had been in contact with Hatton for several years from 2014, told officers that he had been coerced into sexually abusing the two-year-old family member on camera.
As a result of his confession, the boy has since been convicted of rape and sexual assault in America and sentenced to 50 years in prison.
Meanwhile, Hatton, 34, of West Street, Crewe, was handed an 18-year jail term in the UK.
Nicholas Hatton, 34, of Crewe, was sentenced to 18 years for his role in grooming a boy and coercing him to rape a young relative in the United States
The court heard the boy was one of Hatton’s four victims. Detectives were able to identify two of them, who were both based in America.
The investigation into Hatton initially began in 2021 when officers from Cheshire Police received intelligence from a social media company in relation to his online activity.
A warrant was carried out at Hatton’s home in Crewe where a number of electronic devices were seized and sent for analysis.
During examination of the devices, officers recovered more than 12,000 indecent images of children and 750 indecent videos, as well as 1,050 prohibited images.
Following the discovery, Hatton was rearrested in June 2022.
During questioning he denied all knowledge of who the children in the images were.
He was then released on conditional bail. It was at this point that a Cheshire Police Victim Identification Officer identified the two US-based victims.
Hatton was subsequently charged and later pleaded guilty to all of the offences.
He was charged with six counts of causing or inciting a boy under 13 to engage in sexual activity; two counts of causing or inciting the sexual exploitation of a child aged 13 to 17 and one count of possession of indecent images of children.
Chester Crown Court heard the victim, who had been in contact with Hatton for several years from 2014, told officers that he had been coerced into sexually abusing the two-year-old family member on camera
Hatton also pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children, three counts of taking indecent images of children and one count of possession of prohibited images of children.
Following his sentencing, Detective Constable Faye Taylor, of the Online Child Abuse Investigation Team at Cheshire Police, said: ‘This has been a complex and lengthy investigation which ultimately uncovered Hatton’s despicable behaviour.
‘It was apparent throughout the investigation that Hatton is a sexual predator who preyed on vulnerable young boys and had no regard for the effects his actions would have on the victims or their families.
‘Due to the grooming that he suffered as a child, one of Hatton’s victim in America has been handed a lengthy prison sentence, while his family member suffered sustained sexual abuse.
‘While none of the victims will ever be able to forget what happened to them, I hope that Hatton’s conviction and the sentence handed to him will provide them with some closure.
‘I also hope that Hatton’s conviction will act as a reminder that there are no borders when it comes to sexual abuse, it can happen anywhere at any time and the impact can be lifechanging.’
In addition to his prison sentence, Hatton was also ordered to sign the sex offenders register for life and handed an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.