Child rapist sentenced after eight-year campaign of abuse
20 Oct 2026 03:21 PM
A South Manchester man who raped and sexually assaulted children as young as six over a period of eight years has been jailed for 23 years
A National Crime Agency investigation found that Darren Welsby, 48, from Wythenshawe, also shared videos of his abuse with other paedophiles on dark web forums.
Welsby was arrested by NCA officers at Manchester Airport in August 2020, and his phone was seized.
His former address, also in Wythenshawe, was searched and 58 exhibits were seized, including 10 digital devices containing over 30,000 indecent images of children, dating back to 2005.
Amongst these were photographs and videos taken by Welsby, where he had captured his offending, including the rape and sexual assault of a child.
He was found with 4,700 category A images (the most serious), 4,500 category B images, 24,000 category C images and 18 extreme pornographic images depicting bestiality.
Welsby abused six children in total between 2012 and 2020. In addition to rape and sexual assault offences, Welsby took indecent photographs of children without their knowledge, and caused some to engage in sexual activity, which he also captured.
The NCA’s investigation started in 2020, when officers examined three sets of child abuse images which had been uploaded to an INTERPOL database which allows law enforcement agencies to work collaboratively and establish if the images are ‘known’ or have been seen by law enforcement before, anywhere in the world. This collaboration supports the identification of victims worldwide.
Welsby had uploaded images to the dark web via The Onion Router, or TOR, under a username he used across a number of different platforms on both the dark and clear web. This offending was captured by investigators working within the Australian Federal Police and shared with law enforcement agencies via INTERPOL.
Under the same username, Welsby had posted self-taken intimate images of himself on an adult pornography site, posing naked or in female lingerie. Investigators identified visual similarities between the perpetrator in these images and Welsby.
The NCA instructed two forensic experts to determine whether, as suspected, the images were of Welsby and that they were taken on his devices.
A forensic anthropologist compiled a report which compared the photographs of the perpetrator in the child sexual abuse material to photographs of Welsby, including the intimate ones he took himself and images taken when he was in custody. A second specialist digital forensic expert looked at the images, which can be analysed in a specialist way to obtain data about the camera used. The work of both these experts demonstrated that Welsby was responsible for the abuse and imagery captured.
A jury at Manchester Crown Court, Crown Square convicted Welsby of all 18 offences he was charged with on 10 July this year following a two-week trial. These included rape of a girl under 13, causing / inciting a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity, sexual assault of a girl under 13 by touching, a number of indecent images of children offences and possession of extreme pornographic images.
He was sentenced to 23 years imprisonment at the same court today (20 October).
NCA Senior Manager Jen Cruickshank said: “Darren Welsby is a predatory sexual offender who inflicted the most horrific sexual abuse against children, some as young as six, over a period of eight years.
“It is impossible to imagine the trauma they suffered as a result of these monstrous crimes, and the emotional scars they’ve been left with.
“Our investigation was painstaking and time-consuming; utilising innovative forensic techniques to identify Welsby, who attempted to hide his offending by using the dark web. This comprehensive investigation ensured that necessary evidence was secured to bring him to justice.
“This sentence is testament to the skill and unwavering dedication of investigators in the NCA and we will continue to pursue dangerous offenders like Welsby, who prey on those who are vulnerable, to protect children from sexual abuse.”
Bethany Raine, Specialist Prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Darren Welsby has been imprisoned for sexually abusing children, including the rape of a girl under 13. He took images of some of these terrible crimes.
“This was a landmark case as the expert digital forensic evidence proved that those images were taken on the same device as other images, known to have been taken on one of Welsby’s phones. Another expert report confirmed that the hands shown in some of the images were Welsby, by comparing them to photos of his knuckles.
“This has been a complex and challenging case due to the unique evidence needed to bring Welsby to justice. It would not have been possible without the comprehensive investigation undertaken by the National Crime Agency.
"The Crown Prosecution Service is committed to tackling child sexual abuse and to supporting victims through the criminal justice process.”