Fairground Worker Jailed for Grooming Young Girls

A 42-year-old paedophile who groomed girls as young as 11 while working at Barry Island Pleasure Park has been sentenced to prison. 🚨

Carl Lintern, from Cramlington in Northumberland, used his position at the popular fairground during summer 2023 to target vulnerable young girls, buying them food, alcohol, cigarettes, fairground tokens and soft toys before sexually exploiting them.

The investigation began after parents of one victim confronted Lintern at his workplace. Finding him “unbothered” by their accusations, they photographed him and reported him to South Wales Police, whose Child Exploitation Team immediately launched an investigation.

Following his arrest at the fairground, police uncovered evidence of further abuse involving multiple victims. Investigators found Lintern had befriended young girls on social media, sent them indecent images of himself, and stalked them in their daily lives.

His grooming tactics included showering victims with gifts and affection before adding himself to their Snapchat accounts. He then blackmailed them into sending explicit images and threatened to share intimate photographs when they asked to be left alone.

When questioned, Lintern denied knowingly having sexual contact with victims, claiming the fair had become a “Carl fan club” and that he was “trying to help the girls.”

Lintern was found guilty of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child under 13 and two counts of sexual assault on a female. He also pleaded guilty to possessing indecent images of a child and threatening to share intimate photographs.

At Cardiff Crown Court today, he was sentenced to three years and eight months in prison.

Detective Constable Robyn Allen from the South Wales Police Child Exploitation Team said: “Carl Lintern used his job at the fairground as a way to meet and groom his vulnerable victims. He would coerce and control them to maintain a grip on their life which made them feel helpless.

“His criminal behaviour and distorted sense of reality has no place in society. I hope the victims and their families can take some comfort from knowing he is now in jail where he is no longer a threat to others. Today’s sentence should serve as a warning to others who are either involved in offending of this nature or are considering it.”