NATHAN BAKE FROM CHESHIRE SENTENCED TO 16 YEARS FOR CHILD ABUSE SITE ON DARK WEB
A 28-year-old mechanic from Cheshire has been handed a severe prison sentence after being found guilty of creating and managing websites dedicated to child sexual abuse on the dark web.Nathan Bake, who played a significant role in facilitating some of the most heinous online crimes, was sentenced to 16 years in prison following a comprehensive investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA).
Bake was identified as one of three UK-based moderators of a notorious site called ‘The Annex,’ which, although now defunct, once boasted a membership of approximately 90,000 individuals from around the world.
This platform was infamous for its content involving extreme abuse material, including ‘hurtcore’ content and the sexual exploitation of infants and toddlers.
As the head moderator, Bake held a position just below the site’s primary operator, an American man who was subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment in the United States in January.
In his role, Bake was responsible for overseeing a team of roughly 30 staff members.
His duties included enforcing the site’s strict rules, managing user access, and ensuring the platform’s continued operation.
Among his colleagues were two other moderators: Kabir Garg, a psychiatrist from London, and a 48-year-old man from Eastbourne.
Both sat just below Bake in the site’s hierarchy and were also involved in moderation activities.
Garg was previously sentenced to six years in prison last year, and the Eastbourne man is scheduled for sentencing at Lewes Crown Court next week.
New users seeking access to The Annex had to go through a ‘gateway’ process, where they were required to post a certain amount of abuse material to gain the trust of the site’s administrators.
Once trusted, they were granted access to the broader community.
Bake and his fellow moderators actively advised members on how to evade law enforcement detection and encouraged ongoing sharing of illegal content to keep the site active and engaging.
Evidence recovered by the NCA included a disturbing post from Bake, in which he urged users to share their most disturbing content during a ‘HAPPY HOUR’ event, saying: ‘Come on people, Show us what you’ve got for HAPPY HOUR.
Show us the boys and girls that turn you on the most.’ In November 2022, officers raided Bake’s residence in Runcorn, seizing multiple devices such as laptops, smartphones, USB drives, and external hard drives.
During the search, they discovered a laptop actively running the TOR dark web browser, displaying indecent images of children.
Forensic analysis of his devices revealed that Bake was a co-creator of a second child abuse website and served as the head moderator of a directory-style page containing links to other abuse forums on the dark web.
Authorities also recovered hundreds of thousands of indecent images and videos depicting children, along with a 576-page paedophile manual.
In November 2023, Bake pleaded guilty to 12 charges, including facilitating the sexual exploitation of children, participating in an organized crime group, possessing a paedophile manual, and distributing indecent images of minors.
Today, at Chester Crown Court, he was sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Additionally, Bake was ordered to be placed on the Sex Offenders Register for life and was issued a lifetime Sexual Harm Prevention Order, underscoring the severity of his crimes and the ongoing threat posed by his actions.
