Keenan Ridgway, 21, recorded himself and his victim during the horrific assault (Picture: PA)
A predator who sexually assaulted a four-year-old girl and shared hundreds of horrific images has been jailed.
Keenan Ridgway, 21, took 318 pictures of himself abusing his young victim.
The attacks happened on two separate occasions, beginning in 2018, in Lincolnshire.
Ridgway then shared the content the dark web, but was spotted doing so by Essex Police in early 2020.
Interpol had noticed that six images of the abuse had been shared with someone in Miami.
They flagged this to the National Crime Agency (NCA) which arrested Ridgway in August 2021.
This granted investigators access to his devices, showing he had around 30,000 indecent images, including ones showing babies being abused.
He also had an account on a website which allowed paedophiles to trade and distribute abusive content.
Lincoln Crown Court heard how Ridgway had around 30,000 abusive images on his devices (Picture: PA)
A further 42 images of his victim and 355 other indecent photos and videos, with some portraying children being raped, were discovered. In total, Ridgway shared 462 photos online.
‘These images are now on the dark web – there is no way in which any authority can retrieve them,’ prosecutor David Eager told Lincoln Crown Court.
The mum of the child Ridgway abused said her heart was broken and told him she hopes he ‘rots in hell’.
Judge Simon Hirst told the 21-year-old: ‘This is not simply a case of sexual images being taken, but I have got to be mindful of the fact that not only did you take them, not only did you distribute them to like-minded individuals, but these are images that have gone worldwide.
Keenan Ridgway, 21, was jailed for six years (Picture: PA)
‘They will be there forever. They can never be removed.’
Ridgway was described as appearing emotionless throughout the hearing.
The 21-year-old, from Croft Bank, Skegness, pleaded guilty to 16 separate charges last November.
They were one count of assault of a child aged under 13 by penetration, one of possession of prohibited images, two of sexual assault of a child under 13, three of taking indecent photos of a child, three of possession of indecent photographs of a child and six of distributing indecent photographs of a child.
He was jailed for six years and three months for the assault by penetration and given lesser, concurrent sentences for all other charges ranging between one month, eight months and two years.
Ridgeway’s defence lawyer Julia King said her client had no previous convictions and had ‘expressed disgust and remorse’ about his actions.
She added: ‘He has worked to address quite how and why he finds himself before the Crown Court being sentenced for such serious matters.
‘He is motivated, willing, and eager to engage with all relevant agencies.’
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The mum of the child who was abused told the paedophile she hopes he ‘rots in hell’.
