Ulster Unionist Justice Spokesperson Justice Spokesperson Doug Beattie MC MLA said the PSNI’s inability to act decisively on serial child sex abuser Alexander McCartney was not due to lack of will, but lack of resources. A damning Police Ombudsman report confirms that critical forensic analysis was delayed because the PSNI was overwhelmed and underfunded. Beattie warns that unless the Department of Justice urgently prioritises funding for frontline policing and forensic capacity, cases like McCartney’s will continue to slip through the cracks with devastating consequences.

Ulster Unionist Justice Spokesperson Doug Beattie MC MLA said,

“The case of prolific child sex abuser, Alexander McCartney, has had a massive reach right across the globe. His online child sexual abuse, much of it while on bail, led to the death of Cimarron Thomas, from West Virginia, leaving the family devastated and leading directly to the death of  Cimarron’s father, Benjamin Jay Thomas, who also took his own life.

“Where we can never redirect blame away from McCartney and his devastating activities, we must ensure that this type of serial sexual abuse never happens again and that we have the resources in place to prevent it or detect it.  The Police Ombudsman’s report into the PSNI handling of the case has made it extremely clear, as has reports from the National Crime Agency, that the main issue was police resources. They simply didn’t have the capability or the capacity to direct the required resources to this case, including forensic analysis of McCartney’s device, while they also dealt with 935 computers and 284 mobile phones which also needed forensic examination and the live organised child abuse taking place.

“This case highlights how we have allowed the PSNI to be reduced to a shadow of itself by not prioritising funding for the force. The reality is officers are dedicated and committed but can only do so much, but without resource; without the correct staffing levels, without the investment in infrastructure and technology, this type of thing is going to happen time and time again. Without a doubt, the Department of Justice needs increased funding, but it also needs to look at the outcomes of its present funding distribution and remove those activities that eat up resource but do not support the core aims of the department of ensuring safety of our society through effective policing and a workable Criminal Justice System.”