Currently I'm leaning more into this being a genuine retarded pedo rather than an ARG or an internet prank, simply because the latter necessitates a fuck ton of effort and planning for what has so far amounted to basically fuck all in return as far as exposure goes.
Further, the fact that there was supposedly AI generated soft cp on some of the accounts makes me very sceptical that this is some weird art project by someone like David Firth, because even putting the obvious aside that anyone with their head screwed on right wouldn't even consider making shit like that, my understanding is that it is also illegal to produce any sexually suggestive images involving representations of minors under UK pornography laws.
One thing I also wanted to bring up was in regards to the timeline of all this. Because while the individual mentioned as being a known local weirdo in the 90's is yet to be confirmed to even exist, let alone be the subject in question, assuming that they are the same person could it be that they took a substantial break from this behaviour and have only recently returned to old habits?
I know of a few serial killers that took a break for a few years before killing again, and hell even regular lolcows do it from time to time. I just think it could explain why he's appeared out of nowhere with almost no internet footprint, while also being connected to a supposedly known character from over two decades ago in the same city.