A man who obsessively groomed a 14-year-old girl he met through the online gaming platform Roblox has been jailed for 28 months.
Carlo Tritta, now 19, kept indecent images of the girl and travelled hundreds of miles from his home in Eastleigh, Hampshire, to turn up uninvited at her home in Manchester.
The case has been highlighted by police as a warning about the dangers children can face online. Tritta pleaded guilty to making indecent images.
The details of the case underline how abuse can begin in digital spaces used by children and young people, and how it can move from online contact to real-world harassment. In this case, police said the behaviour involved obsessive grooming, image offences and an in-person visit that crossed the country.
Roblox is a widely used online gaming platform, and the case has drawn attention because it involved contact made through a service popular with children. The police response has focused on the risks of children being targeted by adults in online environments where they may not immediately recognise the warning signs of exploitation.
Tritta’s sentence of 28 months reflects the seriousness of the offences he admitted, including the possession of indecent images and the wider pattern of grooming behaviour described in the case.
The case serves as a reminder that online abuse can take many forms and can escalate quickly. Authorities continue to urge parents, carers and children to stay alert to strangers making contact through games, apps and social platforms, especially where conversations become secretive, controlling or inappropriate.
