A predatory paedophile from East London, who described raping 12-year-old boys as the "best sex ever", has been jailed for 22 years amid police fears he may have hundreds of unidentified victims.
A Campaign of Predatory Abuse
Barthimaus Ehiemere, 25, of Chart Street in Hackney, was sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Thursday, November 20. The court heard how he groomed seven boys, aged between 12 and 16, for explicit videos and offered them money for sex. He was convicted of raping two 12-year-old boys.
Ehiemere had previously admitted to 32 offences, including rape of a child under 13 and breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) issued in 2021 for indecent images offences. In August, he was found guilty of a further 15 charges, including additional sexual assaults and paying for the sexual services of a child.
Sentencing him, Judge Timothy Greene stated: "You are a serious danger to young boys with whom you come into contact. This was a campaign over several years of predator sexual offending."
Deceptive Tactics and Vile Crimes
Ehiemere's offending spanned from 2019 to 2023. He used Snapchat to contact young boys, often posing as a trombonist with a camel business in Dubai. He would share pornography and indecent images before coercing them to perform sex acts.
One victim was lured to a woodland in Surrey in July 2019, where Ehiemere raped him over a tree branch after offering him £20. In January 2023, another 12-year-old was raped in a park in South West London. Ehiemere filmed himself raping the same boy in a cinema toilet the following month.
When police arrested him again in July 2023, they found evidence on his phone of him using Snapchat to advertise for boys and searches for 'young boy rape'. In messages with another paedophile, he callously referred to his rapes as the "best sex ever".
Lasting Harm and a Plea for Victims
The court heard profound impact statements from the victims. One said he "immediately wanted to scrub himself clean" after the attack, while another developed serious mental health problems and now sees the world as an unsafe place.
Detective Chief Inspector Kirk Doyle, speaking after the trial, said: "Barthimaus Ehiemere was a prolific and predatory sexual offender who committed some of the most cowardly and abhorrent crimes imaginable. His actions have caused deep and lasting harm."
Police are continuing their investigation, under Operation Teigar, and believe there could be many more victims. DCI Doyle urged them to come forward, stating: "You will be listened to. You will be believed. You will be supported."
Ehiemere was sentenced to 18 years in prison with an extended licence of four years. He must serve two-thirds of his custodial term before being eligible for release and will be a registered sex offender for life.
