A WOMAN swindled people she contacted on the internet out of thousands of pounds by making up sob stories involving sick and dead children.

Katie Ringer, 18, also sent defaced photographs of children with offensive, racist and sexual comments via an online messenger service.

Ringer, from Shoebury, had to move with her family to Norwich when her victims started showing up at her home, suspecting she was behind the abuse.

Yesterday – two years after she started offending – the teenager admitted 23 charges at Basildon Crown Court.

She showed no emotion as she admitted eight charges of harassment, and 14 of fraudulently collecting cash, and one of threatening to blow up one of her victim’s homes.

Speaking after the hearing, Sgt Tracey Butt of Shoebury police said: “Her behaviour is despicable.

“This has had a big impact on the whole community. We hope the sentence will reflect what she’s done.”

Ringer raked in more than £2,000 from donors worldwide, who fell for sob stories posted on social networking websites.

In one, she claimed she had to a premature baby and needed money for special equipment. Another time, she claimed she needed money for a dead daughter’s funeral. Another scam, saw her claim a car had crashed into her house and she needed money, as she was pregnant with twins.

In other posts, she claimed she was homeless and had children with special dietary requirements she couldn’t support. In truth, she was a childless teenager, living at home with her parents.

Ringer set up fake profiles on Facebook, befriending as many people as she could in and around Southend, so she could use pictures of their children in her scams.

She also posted versions of some pictures, defaced with racist messages and comments about paedophilila via the Blackberry Messenger service.

The offences were committed between August 2012 and June 2014, though police say Ringer’s victims are still suffering as a result of her actions.

PC Sharon Blaxland, who led the investigation, said: “Months later, her victims are still very upset and traumatised.

“Some have removed all photographs of their children from social media, as it’s affected them that much.

“They feel their toddlers and babies have been tainted by it.”

After the hearing Ringer was freed on bail ahead of sentencing at Basildon Crown Court on January 7.

Judge David Owen-Jones requested a psychiatric report and other pre-sentence reports from Essex Probation.

Police had regard‘ed her as a victim

AS Katie Ringer’s web of hate and lies rebounded on her, she told police she was being harrassed herself and let them guard her Shoebury home.

PC Sharon Blaxland started investigating at the end of 2013, after Ringer’s family reported someone was sending offensive messages via a fake Blackberry Messenger profile, pretending to be her.

Police spent months trying to get to the truth, even contacting Blackberry in Canada.

PC Blaxland said: “At first, I thought I was dealing with a victim.

“Then by January, as people started turning up at her house, we started to suspect it was her. By this point, lots of other people had contacted her by Blackberry Messenger.

When we arrested her and got her phone, we realised there was more to this than we thought.”

That was when police found Ringer had defrauded people of cash, with one one man donating £1,000 and another taking out a loan to send her money.

Sgt Butt said: “Sharon Blaxland has done an amazing job to persevere with this case, because it was so important we presented all the facts to the courts and got justice.

“We want to send a clear message if you harass people on social media or send malicious photos and messages, you will be dealt with strongly by the police and courts.”

Messages left me unable to look at family snaps

ONE of Katie Ringer’s victims said was still unable to look at some photos of her child and grandchild after seeing how the fraudster misused the images.

Dilek Ali, 39, of Southchurch Road, Southend, was sent abusive messages attached to photos of her son, Reggie, now two. Her daughter, Tia Wood, was also sent messages about her baby daughter, Lexi. In both cases Ringer told their mums the children should have been drowned at birth.

They were also sent defaced photographs of their children with offensive images and messages drawn on them.

She said: “Even now, I can’t look at those photographs Katie destroyed. I still have flashbacks of what she did to poor little children she didn’t even know.

“Someone like that has traumatised so many people.

She should be locked up.

“When I received the first photograph, I wanted to cry, I was so upset. I just grabbed hold of my babies and cuddled them. It’s awful. I just can’t believe a child would think that.

“All along, she told us it wasn’t her though now she has finally admitted it.”