WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT Carlo Tritta, 19, first made contact with the 14-year-old girl from the Manchester area through mobile gaming platform Roblox before he moved the conversation on to other messaging apps
The mother of a teenage girl groomed by a sexual predator she encountered on mobile gaming platform Roblox has urged parents to monitor their children’s phone usage.
Carlo Tritta, 19, from Bishopstoke, Eastleigh, Hampshire, has been jailed for 28 months after admitting to various offences including making indecent images of a child and sexual communications with a child.
Tritta initially contacted the girl from the Manchester area through Roblox in September 2024 when she was 14 before moving their conversation to other messaging apps including Snapchat, Discord and WhatsApp.
Tritta proceeded to engage in “highly sexualised” conversations with his victim and exchanged intimate images and videos. Police were notified last August when the complainant’s mother uncovered the messages and images. Tritta was arrested and questioned but subsequently breached his bail conditions by travelling to the girl’s home in an attempt to persuade her to drop the case.
On Thursday, prosecutor Rachel Yarwood told Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court that Tritta entered through the back door of the property and confronted the complainant despite her requesting him to leave. She said: “He also sent her letters, attempted to contact her by phone and made attempts to frustrate the criminal investigation.”
Tritta subsequently admitted to perverting the course of justice and was sentenced last December to a 12-month custodial sentence, suspended for two years. Yet just three days later, he returned to the complainant’s home attempting to confront her, entering the property and damaging a video camera.
Tritta was arrested once more and subsequently pleaded guilty to making indecent images, including 25 in the most serious Category A classification, sexual communication with a child and causing a child to watch a sexual act, all of which took place between January and August 2025.
He also admitted to witness intimidation and criminal damage.
In a victim impact statement, the girl said she “felt trapped and upset” and was “scared of going downstairs at night” because she thought the defendant would be there. The victim’s mother told the court they were “constantly on edge” at their home that “no longer feels like a safe space” and had considered moving.
Edward Steele, defending, put forward what he described as a “mercy submission” to the court, urging judges not to activate Tritta’s previously suspended sentence. He argued that Tritta was “essentially fixated” with his victim “partly as a function of his neurodiverse condition”.
The court was told the defendant has Asperger syndrome alongside a mixed anxiety and depressive disorder, which “may have compromised his understanding of what he was doing”.
Mr Steele said: “He is now coming to terms with the seriousness of the offences he committed which is borne out by a letter of apology and his remorse.” However, Recorder Ciaran Rankin ruled that Tritta’s pattern of behaviour over a prolonged period warranted an immediate custodial sentence.
He further noted that the author of a pre-sentence report considered Tritta to pose a high risk of harm to children, and that the witness intimidation offences had been carried out just days after a court order had been put in place.
Following sentencing, Hampshire Police revealed that Tritta had manipulated his victim into believing they were in a relationship by “love-bombing” her with relentless messages, gifts and takeaways.
After his initial arrest, he repeatedly texted the girl and even dispatched two cards through Moonpig.com in a bid to persuade her to drop the case. His conduct then escalated further, police added, when he reported the girl’s mother to social services.
The mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told the Press Association she had uncovered Tritta’s contact with her daughter after the child became withdrawn, suffered disrupted sleep and experienced suicidal thoughts.
The mother said: “I feel like my daughter has been in some kind of abusive, controlling, coercive relationship with somebody who’s a lot older.” She added: “I don’t feel safe in my own house, I’ve got cameras up, I’ve got to think about safeguarding, I’ve had to change times of school pickup, when I drop off, I just get jumpy in my own house.” Calling for stricter controls on apps designed for children, she also urged parents to keep a close eye on what their youngsters are getting up to on their mobile phones.
Speaking about Roblox, she said: “To me, I just thought it’s a child’s game. I did not think for one minute that these older people, paedophiles, are essentially grooming on these games and contacting these children.
“I try to tell as many people as possible. Watch what your children are playing; they can be dangerous. I thought, my girl, she gets high grades in school, she can be a bit of a moody teenager but she doesn’t go out. I just thought how lucky am I that I’ve got my daughter at home with me and she’s safe, but I’m in my bedroom and she’s in the other and all this is happening to her.”
Detective Constable Jodi Bartlett, who led the investigation, said: “Tritta’s behaviour lays bare the terrifying realities of how criminals use the online world to target and harm vulnerable people. Do you truly know who you, or your child, is speaking to online? The victim in this case was just 14 years old. She and her mother were subjected to a campaign of fear and abuse at the hands of obsessive and predatory Tritta.
“Gaming platforms should be spaces where people, especially children, are safe. The anonymity of the internet allows dangerous individuals like Tritta to prey on others for their own twisted gain, and the lengths that Tritta went to in order to maintain his abuse of this young girl is shocking. I would encourage parents to talk openly with their children about how they use the internet, and if you have any concerns, trust your instincts and report these to police.”
Karina Lyon, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Not only is Tritta a sexual predator but he has also exhibited deeply troubling behaviour by attending the girl’s address in breach of his bail and a court order, damaging property and trying to interfere with witnesses.
“I hope today’s outcome sends a clear message that the Crown Prosecution Service is determined to bring those who exploit children to justice.”
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