Danish man arrested over alleged 'persistent online attack' on Auckland schoolgirl

The man was arrested in the Danish city of Vejle in a joint operation with New Zealand Police, the Danish National Cyber Crime Centre (NC3), and the South-East Jutland Police. Photo / iStock

An alleged sex predator who tried to blackmail an Auckland teenager with sexually explicit photographs and videos, before launching an all-out cyber attack on her family and school, has been arrested in Denmark.

The 24-year-old man has been arrested and charged over an alleged "persistent online attack" against the schoolgirl, which New Zealand Police have described as "distressing" for the girl and her family.

It comes after the Herald exclusively revealed in June that cyber crime experts were working to track down the overseas sex predator after he targeted the schoolgirl by extorting sexually explicit photographs of her, and then tried to blackmail her into providing more images by threatening to post the original pictures online.

When she refused, he hacked into her family's home computers, stole their information, and then launched a denial-of-service attack on the servers of her high school.

He also uploaded the explicit images and videos to pornography websites, and bombarded the school's Facebook page with links to the sites.

Police today issued a statement saying a man had been arrested in the Danish city of Vejle in a joint operation with New Zealand Police, the Danish National Cyber Crime Centre (NC3), and the South-East Jutland Police.

He has been charged with cybercrimes relating to the online posting of private photos and hacking of private computers under Danish law, police said in a statement.

The man was arrested in relation to the Auckland schoolgirl's case, police confirmed to the Herald.

He will be brought before the Court of Kolding Town in a closed hearing where a pre-trial detention will be requested.

In a statement, the prosecutor of South-East Jutland Police, Niels Tipsmark, said: "This case is characterised by a close cooperation between South-East Jutland Police, NC3, and the New Zealand Police.

"The cooperation with a country on the other side of the world has been smooth, mutual and fruitful.

"Due to the closed doors hearing, we cannot disclose further information about the case at this time."

Detective Senior Sergeant Cliff Clark of the New Zealand Police cybercrime unit said: "This was particularly distressing experience for the victim and her family and we are pleased for them that we have been able work successfully with the Danish authorities in making an arrest."

Keeping kids safe online - tips from the experts

• Talk to your children. Parents should realise there needs to be no secrets with teenagers. It's dangerous.
- School Principal

• Make sure teenagers understand the importance of keeping details private. Not using their full names or revealing addresses or phone numbers are ways to keep safe.
- Kidspot

• If your child tells you about an issue reassure them they've done the right thing to trust you with the problem.
- Netsafe

• Negotiate clear guidelines for web and online game use that fits your kids' maturity and family's values. Pay attention to what kids do and who they meet online.
- Microsoft