In Alicante, a man was detained by the Guardia Civil and ordered held in custody on accusations that he obtained sexual images from two underage girls, one from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the other from Badajoz. Authorities say he contacted both through social networks and used pressure to coax continued sharing of explicit photographs.
Officials say the inquiry began in April 2024 after two families reported in tandem that their daughters, both under 14, had fallen prey to a similar online scheme. The parallel complaints, one from Badajoz province and the other from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, drew investigators from different jurisdictions into a single thread, tying two separate cases to one suspect who resided in Alicante. The case illustrates how coordinated cross‑regional work can illuminate patterns of online harm affecting young people.
Across both incidents, parents reported that their daughters exchanged intimate images with a person they did not know, who posed as an adult on social networks. The pattern raised red flags about a calculated grooming operation, where a predator exploited trust online to obtain increasing amounts of material. The behavior points to a deliberate strategy designed to tighten control over victims and widen the reach of the coercion.
Efforts by the Santa María de Guía Judicial Police in the northern part of Gran Canaria and the Technological Investigation Team from the Badajoz Command converged on a single profile: a resident of Alicante. The cross‑jurisdictional collaboration highlighted a sustained push to uncover online exploitation involving minors and to connect disparate indicators into a coherent investigative picture.
The suspect is accused of contacting the girls through a false profile, earning their trust, and persuading them to send intimate and sexual images while repeatedly pressing for a face‑to‑face meeting. The approach relied on deception and grooming to escalate wrongdoing over time, with careful steps to deepen the victims’ sense of connection to the stranger.
Authorities say in at least one case the man threatened to circulate the images he already possessed to all of the girl’s contacts if she did not provide more material. This coercive tactic sought to isolate the victims and compel ongoing submission to demands, creating a climate of fear and compliance rather than consent.
Last week, the Guardia Civil carried out the arrest and conducted a search of the suspect’s home in Alicante, during which a substantial amount of electronic and digital evidence was seized. The devices and data are expected to shed light on the scope of the alleged offenses and reveal whether other victims or related cases exist.
The man was taken into custody on charges of crimes against sexual freedom, specifically sexual assault against two minors. After appearing before a judge, he was ordered remanded in prison pending further proceedings and the possibility of additional charges arising from the ongoing inquiry. The investigation continues as authorities assess the full extent of activity and seek to identify any other victims affected through online contact or coercive manipulation.
Investigators have not ruled out the possibility that the suspect may be responsible for other similar offenses that have not yet surfaced. The Guardia Civil notes that the inquiry remains active as detectives map the reach of the alleged network and pursue leads that could reveal additional cases or victims linked to this online grooming pattern.
The case underscores the ongoing risk posed by online networks to minors and the need for vigilance from families and communities to spot grooming early. Local law enforcement in Spain stresses the importance of reporting suspicious online contact and keeping channels of communication open with children to safeguard them from exploitation that starts in digital spaces.