Teen's 'attentive' Snapchat friend turned out to be 'a parent's worst nightmare'

Teen's 'attentive' Snapchat friend turned out to be 'a parent's worst nightmare'When officers found indecent images of children aged between eight and 11 on Benjamin Mitchell's phone he said he "knew it was wrong" but that "age wasn't a consideration for him"NewsAdam Everett and Anders Anglesey News Reporter08:35, 15 Apr 2026View 2 ImagesBenjamin Mitchell, 19, had images of young children on his phone (Image: LIVERPOOL ECHO)A teenager's Snapchat friend who presented himself as "kind and attentive" turned out to be a "parent's worst nightmare", a court heard as he was jailed.Benjamin Mitchell, 19, groomed his victim via Snapchat and "latched onto her like a leech" before coercing her into sending sexual videos of herself. Her abuser went to make several disturbing admissions over his apparent desire to "use cable ties to tie up children."The schoolgirl told a court yesterday: "He knew exactly what he was doing. He knew it was wrong. He did it anyway. He only cares about himself." Liverpool Crown Court heard on Tuesday that Mitchell, of Newton-le-Willows, started an online relationship with a 15-year-old girl after he became friends with her on Snapchat in August of last year.View 2 ImagesThe case was heard at Liverpool Crown Court (Image: Liverpool Echo)READ MORE: Boy thrown from Tate Modern balcony takes 'sad step backward' in recoveryREAD MORE: Fury as Liverpool foodbank collection stolen at Anfield in 'deplorable' action caught on CCTVOver four months, Mitchell sent images of himself performing a sex acts and pressured her into sharing indecent material of herself performing sex acts. Prosecutor Paul Blasbery said the schoolgirl would send Mitchell between "five to eight" such videos each week, leaving her "feeling awful."Mitchell's behaviour persisted over the course of the following four months until...