A MAN from the North-East has been jailed for 12 years today for his part in the rape of an eight-year-old girl in the United States.

Ronald William MacRae, 51, of Duncan Street, Pallion, Sunderland admitted two charges of gross indecency and six charges of sexual offences against a girl under 13 when he appeared at Newcastle Crown Court.

MacRae was arrested last June after an investigation revealed that he used webcams to incite a man in the US to rape and sexually assault an eight-year-old girl and broadcast images of these offences back to him in the UK.

His name was passed to Northumbria Police by the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP), who identified MacRae’s connection with the US offences.

Over the course of the investigation police worked closely with CEOP and the FBI in the United States to obtain vital evidence of MacRae's offences.

Detective Sergeant Eric Myers of Sunderland CID said: "The sentence handed down to MacRae today reflects the horrific nature of the crimes he was involved in.

"MacRae instigated these offences against an innocent girl for his own twisted gratification."

Ruth Allen, Head of Intelligence at the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre said: “MacRae believed that because he was thousands of miles away from his victim – a young child being raped on his instruction – law enforcement would be unable to connect him with these horrific offences. He was wrong. CEOP will continue to work with police forces internationally to bring child sexual offenders to justice, wherever they or their victims are located.”

MacRae's place on the Sex Offenders Register was also extended for a further eight years beyond his sentence.