Charles Wood

Charles Wood, a 34-year-old man from Worthing, was sentenced at Lewes Crown Court on 13 January 2026 after pleading guilty to multiple serious offences involving child abuse material and online sexual exploitation. Wood had been arrested on 21 November 2024 by Sussex Police and charged on 10 September 2025 at Worthing Custody Centre with eight counts, including possession of an extreme pornographic image, possession of 30 images of child abuse across categories A, B, and C, sending false communications with intent to cause harm, and sharing private images without consent.

The court heard that Wood employed sophisticated deception tactics to target vulnerable teenage girls and young women. He created a fictitious online persona named 'Riley', posing as a teenage girl on social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram, as well as dating sites. To enhance the illusion, Wood utilised a voice-changing application to mimic a young female voice, producing audio clips that were played in court and described by Judge Van Der Zwart as 'chilling' in their realism. Through this persona, Wood built relationships with his victims, sending them sexually explicit images and videos while pressuring them to reciprocate. Some of the intimate images he obtained were subsequently shared with other predatory individuals online, with ongoing enquiries to identify those parties.

Wood's exploitation extended to targeting girls known to sell content online. By impersonating 'Riley', he manipulated them into directing material to him without payment. He further intensified the deception by sending messages and images falsely depicting 'Riley' as self-harming or attempting suicide, and even pretended to be 'Riley's' mother using various aliases to maintain control. These actions formed the basis of convictions under the Online Safety Act, relating to three specific victims whose impact statements highlighted the profound psychological damage inflicted, including feelings of betrayal and violation.

Prior to sentencing, the judge assessed Wood as presenting a high risk of harm to children, women, and girls, whether using his real identity or fabricated ones. Investigator Rose Horan from Sussex Police's Online Child Abuse Team described Wood's behaviour as 'deliberate, sophisticated, carefully planned, highly manipulative and cruel', aimed at his own 'sadistic and sexual gratification'. The devices seized from Wood contained moving images documenting the sexual abuse of young children, underscoring the global trauma associated with such material.

In addition to his custodial sentence, Wood was issued a Sexual Harm Prevention Order lasting 10 years, and the court mandated the destruction of all his devices. He had appeared at Worthing Magistrates' Court on 14 November 2025, where he entered guilty pleas to all charges. This case serves as a stark reminder of the perils of online grooming and exploitation, as investigated by Sussex Police.