Latest Offenders

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A grandfather sent sick messages to an online contact he thought was a 14-year-old girl but turned out to be a 'paedophile hunter'. Raymond Francis believed he was talking to a child when he fantasised about "fondling" her and "making love" in her mother's bed.

The 64-year-old from Newport started an online conversation last July with a profile for a fictional child, Tia Johnson. In reality he was messaging a member of Elite Solo Decoys a vigilante group which "identifies people who seek out children on the internet", Cardiff Crown Court heard on Monday.

Prosecutor Matthew Roberts said the conversation stretched across a 91-page chat thread in the space of a week as Francis became increasingly "persistent, determined and sexually explicit". The vigilante had from the beginning told Francis that she was 14, sending computer-generated images of an underage girl which prompted the defendant to compliment her "sexy figure".

"The defendant said he wished 'Tia' was 16 before going on to ask if she would like sex now," Mr Roberts added. "The subject turned to the issue of contraception in the form of the pill, and she said she had not yet had a boyfriend. He sent pictures of himself topless, which were taken a number of years ago when the defendant was a lot more youthful. He asked for pictures of her breasts in return. She did not send any. He told her he drooled over pictures of her with long hair. He then told Tia she should delete pictures of him from her computer in case her mother located them."

Francis talked of "fondling" Tia in the shower and sent her images of couples having sex. He told her to "hurry up and get on the pill soon" because he hated using condoms. He also told her: "Don't tell anyone at all Tia."

Mr Roberts said Francis sought to make arrangements for sex with Tia when her mother was away. The granddad-of-four discussed "making love in your mother's bed all night".

Francis was arrested at the Coldra Roundabout McDonald's restaurant after being duped into a meeting with a different decoy run by a separate paedophile-hunting group. While being recorded Francis told the vigilantes he had been "chatting, nothing more", before they passed evidence to police. No charges came from the McDonald's meeting because Francis had believed he was meeting an adult, according to his barrister Stuart John.

But the defendant, of Westfield Avenue, pleaded guilty to attempted sexual communication with a child over the Tia Johnson messages. Mr John said his client was already an "isolated man" and the publicity around the case has made him reluctant to leave the house as well as impacting his relationship with his children and grandchildren.

"He has never committed an offence like this before," said Mr John. "The one conviction he has goes back a significant period. He accepts he has to address his issues head-on. That's the only way to prove himself to his family, and if he can't do that his later years will look extremely bleak."

The judge, Recorder Duncan Bould, accepted Francis would be "extremely vulnerable" in prison due to his age and health issues. He said the defendant's actions were "insidious" and "designed to manipulate", but he was "just" persuaded that Francis should be spared immediate custody. He imposed an eight-month prison term suspended for two years and ordered the defendant to complete 30 days of rehab activity and a sex offender programme. Francis, who will be under a sexual harm prevention order for 10 years barring him from unsupervised contact with under-16s, must pay 700 in prosecution costs and a 156 victim services surcharge at a rate of 20 per week.

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A MAN aged 63 has been jailed for two years after he was snared by online paedophile hunters for sending naked pictures of himself to what he believed was a girl aged 13. Gordon Hunter was confronted by members of the group and then arrested by the police, Bradford Crown Court heard today. Recorder Alex Menary, told Hunter, a retired supermarket security guard, he would be failing in his public duty not to jail him. Hunter, of Range Bank, Halifax, pleaded guilty to attempting to communicate with a child for sexual purposes by sending her pictures of his exposed penis. He also admitted inciting a child aged 13 to engage in sexual activity, possession of indecent photographs of children and possession of extreme pornographic images of a person performing a sexual act with an animal. All the offences took place between April 13 and June 9, 2019. Hunter told interviewing officers he was aware that he was speaking to a young adult woman. It was just role playing. Ken Green said in mitigation that he was deeply ashamed. He had worked hard all his life as a supermarket security guard and had caused his wife and family great distress. Recorder Menary ordered Hunter to sign on the sex offender register for ten years.

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A man who raped an 11-year-old boy sees nothing wrong with engaging in sexual activity with children, a court has heard.

Hughie Janes believes children of primary school age know what sexual activity is and "they want it". Swansea Crown Court heard the defendant thinks he was giving pleasure to the boy he raped, and he does not think he committed an offence. Passing an extended sentence on Janes, a judge told him he posed a danger to children.

The court heard 27-year-old Janes abused the boy at an address in Carmarthenshire, raping the child while putting his hand over the youngster's mouth and then performing oral sex on him. John Philpotts, prosecuting, said when arrested and interviewed the defendant gave a prepared statement in which he denied the allegations against him, and then declined to answer any questions.

Janes, of Clos Cefn y Maes, Llwynhendy, Llanelli, had previously pleaded guilty to raping a child under 13 and to causing a child to engage in sexual activity when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has 11 previous convictions for 18 offences including dishonesty matters, drugs offences and violence.

Dyfed Thomas, for Janes, said the defendant had told him he was sorry and remorseful for his actions. He said his client had experienced mental health issues and problems caused by cannabis use - but those were not matters which were relied upon in mitigation.

Recorder IWL Jones told Janes he had no doubt that what he did to his victim would have a life-long effect. He said he had read the very detailed and "concerning" pre-sentence report on the defendant in which Janes said he did not see any problem having a sexual relationship with a male child. Quoting the report, the recorder said Janes believes children as young as 10 "know what sexual activity is and, in that regard, they want it" and "he sees nothing wrong with committing sexual acts with children". The report also said Janes believes he "committed a pleasurable experience" on the boy he raped.

Recorder Jones said the author of the report had concluded that Janes does not believe he has committed an offence, has no remorse or empathy and poses a significant risk of inflicting serious harm by committing further offences. The recorder said everything he had read about Janes led him to the conclusion that only an extended sentence was suitable. He told the defendant: "You are dangerous. There is a significant risk that you will commit further specified offences and, by doing so, you will cause further serious physical or psychological harm to one or more people."

With a one-third discount for his guilty please Janes was given a 12-and-a-half year extended sentence comprising six-and-a-half years custody followed by an extended six-year licence period. The defendant must serve two-thirds of the custodial element of the sentence before he can apply for release but it will be for the Parole Board to determine if he is safe to be released. He will be a registered sex offender for the rest of his life.

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Tony Martin Jon Small, 40, was jailed for three years A paedophile who believed he was sending sexual messages and pictures of himself to an 11-year-old girl has been caged. Tony Martin Jon Small thought he was sending highly sexual messages to a child on a social media app, but he was in fact speaking to a decoy which had been set up by a vigilante group that snares perverts. The 40-year-old was in breach of a sexual harm prevention order at the time of the offence after being convicted of sexual offences in Portsmouth in 2018. On Wednesday, Small appeared at Durham Crown Court to be sentenced for attempting to incite a female child to engage in sexual activity and one charge of breaching a sexual harm prevention order. Both offences were committed between March 24 and 27. He pleaded guilty to both charges at a previous hearing. Robin Patton, prosecuting, said Small began chatting to what he believed was an 11-year-old girl on a social media app called Wink. But the girl was in fact a decoy set up by an adult from a group called Fighting for Innocents. He said Small's messages were "highly sexualised, grooming messages" and "asked about her clothing and what she was wearing". "He told the girl that she looked very sexy and chose to send pictures of himself without a shirt on", Mr Patton said. Small said he "promised to teach the girl about sex" and "described sexual acts he wanted to perform". Small then sent an explicit picture of himself to the decoy as well as a video. Mr Patton said Small was caught after he turned up to a meeting in Peterlee to what he believed would be an adult woman wanting sex - but instead, on March 28, he was arrested. Kate Barnes, defending, said he pleaded guilty at an early opportunity and said no actual activity took place due to there being a "non-existent child". She said Small was a "heavy social media user" and was using the app to speak to friends and initially had no intention of speaking to children. She said while in custody he has also started a construction course. Sentencing Small, of Devace House, Easington Village, Judge James Adkin, the Recorder of Durham, said he had been sending sexual chats to the decoy over a period of three days. He jailed Small for three years and put him on the sex offender's register for life. His sexual harm prevention order remains in place.

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Bryan Huggins, aged 72, arranged to meet the child at a branch of Tesco, telling her to pretend to be his granddaughter to avoid arousing suspicion

A pensioner groomed what he believed was a 13-year-old girl before travelling to Swansea with massage oil, a vibrator, and Viagra for sex with her, a court has heard. In the 72-year-old's car police also found a role of heavy-duty tape and an audiobook of a story about a girl who was abducted from outside school.

Bryan Huggins checked into a hotel in Swansea and arranged to meet the child at a branch of Tesco, telling her to pretend to be his granddaughter to avoid arousing suspicion. In fact, he had been communicating with a decoy account being run by a so-called paedophile hunter group.

Hannah George, prosecuting, told Swansea Crown Court that on April 7 this year Huggins contacted the profile of an 18-year-old woman on a dating website, and began engaging her in conversation. She said the woman's profile was actually being run by an online vigilante group, and the operator of the account told Huggins that she was in fact 13 not 18.

The pair exchanged mobile numbers and began chatting via WhatsApp. The court heard that over the following days the defendant sent a series of sexual messages including describing the sex acts he wanted to perform on her, talking about the pleasure he would get from washing the girl's back in the shower, and asking her to send him naked photographs.

Huggins then arranged to travel from his home in Warwickshire to Swansea to meet the girl, and booked a room in the Hurst Dene Aparthotel in the Uplands area of the city for the pair to stay in. The prosecutor said he arranged to pick up the child from the Tesco supermarket on Oystermouth Road, telling her to pretend to be his granddaughter so as to not arouse suspicion of staff or shoppers.

On April 12 Huggins drove to Swansea, checked into his room at the hotel, then went to the rendezvous point where he was met by members of the group behind the fake dating profile. Police were called and the defendant was arrested, and this hotel room and car were searched. The court heard that in his room at the Hurst Dene officers found massage oil, Viagra tablets, a vibrator, a hair dryer, a computer memory stick containing erotic fiction written by the defendant, and a laptop computer. In the pensioner's nearby car officers found an audiobook of a story about a schoolgirl who was abducted, a roll of heavy-duty tape, and a diary which contained flight numbers and details.

In his police interview, Huggins admitted he had wanted to give the girl he was supposed to be meeting a full-body massage, wanted to touch her breasts and genitals, and use the vibrator. Bryan Huggins, of The Green, Mancetter, Atherstone, Warwickshire, had previously pleaded guilty to attempting to incident a girl to engage in sexual activity when he appeared in the dock for sentencing.

He has four previous convictions for 13 offences, but none of a sexual nature. Andrew Evans, for Huggins, said the defendant would work with whatever agencies ordered by the court in order to help him understand the "motivations and compulsions" that lay behind the offending. Judge Huw Rees told Huggins he had groomed what he believed to be a 13-year-old girl, and then had planned a meeting and travelled a not insignificant distance to Swansea. The judge noted the author of the pre-sentence considered Huggins to be someone who would have caused lasting psychological damage to any child lift alone in his company.

Following the guidelines, and with a one-third discount for his guilty plea, Huggins was sentenced to 16 months in prison. He will serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community. The defendant will be a registered sex offender for the next 10 years and was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for the same length of time.

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A perverted grandad sent sex messages to a teen then blamed his victim afterwards for being a slut.

Twisted Ewen Murray, from Linwood, sent a series of explicit texts to the 14-year-old girl, including one while his wife was in the bathroom.

After being caught out, he offered various explanations for his vile behaviour, including mental illness and labelling the youngster a slut.

Murray, 59, finally faced justice at Paisley Sheriff Court, where he was placed on the Sex Offenders Register for three years.

He was also banned from being in the company of children he isnt related to without adult supervision.

The case had dragged on since 2019, with Murray claiming he suffered mental illness as a result of a blow to his head some years ago causing multiple adjournments in the case.

His lawyer Anthony Boland stated Murrays illness was responsible for him not having control of what he was doing.

But Sheriff Eoin McGinty slammed the pervert for his inability to accept responsibility throughout the case.

He said: You have tried to manipulate proceedings from the offset.

I dont believe your so-called brain injury played any part in this.

You say in the report that you were highly intoxicated, then you went on to say that you sent one message when your wife went to the bathroom.

One of the messages was at 11.30am.

I simply dont believe you were so drunk at that time of the day.

You claim you were so drunk, but you were compos mentis enough to pick your moment.

Murray, of Clippens Road, admitted that between June 21, 2018 and June 25, 2018, he repeatedly sent a girl he knew to be 14-years-old, messages of a sexual and indecent nature.

Court papers show Murray sent the messages for the purposes of obtaining sexual gratification or of humiliating, distressing or alarming the youngster.

Mr Boland told the court Murray now accepts responsibility for the messages.

However, he told how the social worker who wrote the criminal justice social work report considered Murray to deny any sexual nature to the messages.

Sheriff McGinty was worried Murray was supported by his wife in court. He stated: The fact that the report states you deny any sexual nature to these messages, and that your wife is here in court today supporting you, concerns me.

Mr Boland asked the court to deal with Murray without imposing a custodial sentence, adding: We have a man here for offences in 2018.

He has committed no further offences and he is a man who has been on bail for three years and never breached the order.

Sentencing, Sheriff McGinty imposed a direct alternative to custody, warning Murray that if the order is breached, he would be facing jail time.

He said: Ive read the deeply disturbing report, given your comments you have made.

I find your various explanations very disturbing in that you blame the 14-year-old girl, calling her a slut.

This offence does constitute a significant breach of trust and power given that this was a 14-year-old girl who confided in you.

Vile Murray was placed under supervision of the social work department for three years and ordered to carry out the Moving Forward Making Changes programme for sex offenders.

In addition, he was ordered to carry out 270 hours of unpaid work and given a number of conduct requirements that prevent him from deleting internet browsing history and from having any unsupervised contact with any child under the age of 18, that isnt related to him, without another adult being present.

A review hearing was set for July 29.

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A "dirty old man" from Derbyshire who keeps getting caught with sick child abuse images of underage boys told police "I just can't stop it - like an alcoholic".

Derby Crown Court heard how pensioner Michael Brewer-Taylor's latest offence saw police find more than 100 horrific images and films on his laptop. The 72-year-old also had cleaning software on his computer which he would use to delete his browsing history.

And the defendant's sentencing hearing was told he had been carrying out similar offences for around two decades.

Jailing him for 32 months, Recorder Adrian Reynolds said: "There are young kids being forced into sexual activity that they either don't understand or don't consent to for the gratification of a dirty old man like you. What am I supposed to do with someone like you?

"You have been doing this for 20-odd years now and I have read a thoroughly written report about you and in it you come across as a totally deceitful man.

"You turn up for the meetings and say the right things but behind this you don't change at all. It gives me no pleasure at all to send someone of your age to prison but you have given me no choice whatsoever."

Leanne Summers, prosecuting, said Brewer-Taylor has been supervised by experts since being released from his last prison sentence for possessing indecent images of children.

She said two police officers arrived unannounced at his home in Heanor on June 23, 2020, and while one of them spoke to him the other checked his computer.

The prosecutor said: "The officer noticed on the home screen mentions of 'boy' and 'teen' and when he clicked on them that led them to indecent images. There were 36 of (the most serious) category A, 94 category B and 67 category C.

"There were also Google searches that suggested he had been looking for child sex pornography."

Miss Summers said also on the computer was cleaning software which would be capable of erasing the user's browsing history which the defendant was not allowed to have as part of a previously-imposed sexual harm prevention order.

She said in his interview he denied having any illegal material and instead suggested the images were legal and that those pictured were aged 18 and over.

The prosecutor said that in 2013 Brewer-Taylor was arrested and convicted of having indecent images of children.

Miss Summers said: "When asked about those images he told the police 'I just can't stop it - like an alcoholic'."

The defendant, of Buxton Avenue, pleaded guilty to possession of indecent images of children and breaching a sexual harm prevention order.

Roger Wilson, mitigating, said his client's husband is in jail, but he did not say what for, and that he is due to be released from prison next year.

He said: "He had a good career, paid his mortgage off, lives alone, living like a hermit and happy in his own company. He is extremely terrified at his age of a prison sentence. A stand-alone suspended sentence would be like the Sword of Damocles hanging over his head."

As well as the jail sentence, Recorder Reynolds handed Brewer-Taylor a fresh lifetime sexual harm prevention order. He will also be on the sex offender register for life.

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The bravery of vulnerable women who were sexually assaulted by a Norwich man has been praised by prosecutors.

Stephen Hammond, 59, was branded a high risk dangerous offender as he was jailed for 12 years with an extended period on licence of three years and ordered to serve a minimum of two-thirds of that sentence.

Welcoming the sentence the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said he had sought to ruthlessly exploit women for his own sexual gratification.

Jane Foster, from CPS East of England, said: This was a highly complex and challenging case but working alongside the police I was determined to seek justice and ensure the victims' voices were heard.

I have immense respect for the women who have displayed both courage and resilience to come forward and report what happened to them. I hope that this sentence has brought those affected by this mans actions a sense of justice.

Hammond selectively groomed particularly vulnerable women to follow him to his Dereham Road home, before actively encouraging them to take drugs and alcohol.

Two of the women had been unconscious when he sexually assaulted them while he video recorded one of the attacks.

Three women, two aged 40 and one 51, had been living in sheltered housing with long histories of alcohol or drug abuse and mental health issues.

Additional sex offences relating to a fourth woman were dropped after she was unable to give evidence in court.

The CPS said specialist prosecutors had worked in partnership with the police to build a strong case and the conviction demonstrated that a series of heinous crimes had been committed against the women.

Rape and serious sexual offences are some of the most complex crimes to prosecute but whenever there is sufficient evidence for us to prosecute, we will always seek to do so, they added.

Hammond was found guilty following a retrial of three offences of sexual assault by penetration, one charge of sexual assault and one of voyeurism.

Sentencing Hammond at Norwich Crown Court, Judge Antony Bate also praised the bravery of the women and the dedication of police for their careful investigation in this very sensitive and challenging case.

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AN "EXTREMELY dangerous" sex offender who escaped from prison has been captured following a frantic manhunt. Cops had urged anyone who spotted predator Gary Butcher, 55, to call them immediately after he absconded from HMP North Sea Camp in Boston, Lincolnshire on Tuesday. The thug had been sentenced to life behind bars for aggravated burglary. He also has a number of convictions for sex attacks on women. Detectives spent three days tracking him down, and he was finally arrested by an officer from Derbyshire Constabulary shortly after 11.30am on Friday. Butcher was found in the Swadlincote area of Derbyshire after approaching the officer to hand himself in. He remains in police custody tonight. A 56-year-old man was arrested on Thursday night on suspicion of assisting an offender. He too remains in police custody. Butcher will be returned to closed prison conditions while the investigation continues. Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Rachael Cox said: "Following a round-the-clock investigation to bring Butcher into custody, I'm pleased to be able to say that we have now apprehended this man. "At this stage, we don't believe he's committed further offences. "Our appeal has had huge support from the public, and we're very grateful for that, and would like to say thank you to everyone who shared our appeal or provided information. "This was very much a collaborative effort with our officers and staff working tirelessly with neighbouring forces and partner agencies to apprehend Butcher." Officers had warned earlier this week that Butcher may try to "charm his way into homes". Speaking on Wednesday, Chief Superintendent Kate Anderson said she believes he is "extremely dangerous". Butcher's prison dash came just three months after fellow sex offender Paul Robson escaped from the same jail. Robson was jailed in 2000 after breaking into a woman's home and sexually assaulting her. He was eventually found in Skegness following a four-day search.

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A sick Staffordshire dad has been jailed after filming himself having sex with his pet dog. Dean Beer , 56, had started a 'sickening' conversation about bestiality on Facebook Messenger when he committed the vile act, a court had heard.

In the messages, he was encouraged to record himself sexually abusing the dog before sending it on. The disturbing footage was uncovered when the police went to his home after receiving information from the National Crime Agency about the uploading of an indecent image.

Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard the defendant had searched the term 'dog porn' six times. The court also heard his phone contained two inaccessible category C photos of young girls aged between 13 and 15 and extreme pornographic images of women having penetrative sexual activity with dogs and a horse. Now Beer, formerly of Stoke-on-Trent, has been jailed for nine months after he was described as having an 'unhealthy and depraved interest in bestiality'.

Prosecutor Maria Brannan said: "A Land Rover mobile phone was recovered. It contained two inaccessible category C images featuring girls aged between 13 and 15; three accessible extreme pornographic images and six still and two moving images of adult females having penetrative sexual activity with dogs and a horse.

"The search term 'dog porn' was used six times. The conversation was found on Facebook messenger between the defendant, 'Taffy Dean', and a person who has not been arrested.

"The conversation concerned sexual abuse of the defendant's dog. The other person encouraged the defendant to film himself performing a penetrative sex act on his dog. The defendant did the act and sent the film to the other person."

The prosecutor said police received information from the National Crime Agency and officers attended the defendant's home in Stoke on Trenton July 21, 2020. Beer, now of Wentloog Close, Cwmbran, Wales, pleaded guilty to possession of indecent images of children; possession of an extreme pornographic image; intercourse with an animal; and publishing an obscene article.

Andrew Molloy, mitigating, said the defendant, who has no previous convictions, has now lost his good character. Mr Molloy said: "He is quite embarrassed about his conduct. He says it is out of character for him to behave in this way.

"It is almost two years since and he has not been involved in any trouble. He has self-referred to a mental health institution and is engaging well."

He said the defendant no longer has the dog and urged Judge David Fletcher to suspend the sentence. But the judge said only an immediate jail sentence was appropriate, reports StokeonTrentLive.

Judge Fletcher said: "The exchanges on Facebook were some of the most sickening exchanges I have ever had to read about and deal with. You are someone who had an unhealthy and depraved interest in bestiality. Penetrating your own pet dog with your penis is as shocking as it is depraved."

Beer was made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) and was placed on the sex offenders' register for the same period. The judge ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the phone.

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A sick dad begged an undercover police officer to send him depraved images of children and said: Im 100% paedo.

Graham Handlon believed he was chatting to a fellow pervert on a chat room. However, the 49-year-old was really chatting to a covert officer, only months after the deviant previously avoided jail for having a stash of sick images.

The father-of-two revealed he had bought an unregistered pay as you go phone for all my paedo. And he boasted: Theres no limits with me. Im just a dirty c***, Im just into everything. Everything and anything what goes. You know what I mean?

Handlon, was given a two-year community order in January 2020, after he was caught with child rape images. He was given a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

On November 30 that year he messaged the officer on web forum ChatIW stating Hi m 47 peD north west no limits and using the profile name Bipedlknforbiped. Jamie Baxter, prosecuting, said: Perhaps bi-sexual paedophile looking for another bi-sexual paedophile, if thats what bi-ped stands for.

Handlon sent him indecent photos and videos before claiming he did a girl when she was two, report Liverpool Echo. He sent more photos, boasting he had 100s, and asked the officer if he had any photos of his 11-year-old daughter - who the officer pretended to have sexually abused.

The officer said he was cautious who he shared images with, but Handlon replied: I understand that bud, Im 100% paedo bud. To prove his claims he sent more images and added: I have vids too.

Handlon revealed he had the burner phone for all my paedo and swapped numbers. When they spoke that day, the officer recorded the call.

Handlon asked about the imaginary daughter and said: Is she sexy as f***? He added: Older women dont really do much for me but little girls I like.

He then described himself as a dirty c***. The pair also exchanged contact details for messaging app Telegram and Handlon said hed share a 10-minute video of a mum and dad with a little girl.

Handlon, of Park Crescent, Southport, sent three child rape videos to the officer, plus a video of himself performing a sex act. Police tracked his phone and found CCTV footage of him buying a top up voucher at the Spar in Roe Lane, Southport on November 7, 2020.

Officers raided his home on January 25, 2021. He handed over a phone and laptop, but didnt produce his Alba mobile, which was discovered hidden inside a plastic bag in his letterbox.

Handlon denied it was his and gave a no comment interview to police. However, his DNA was on its battery, SIM card and storage card, and the number matched his call with the officer.

Police found 1,408 Category A - the most serious category showing child rape - plus 1,463 Category B and 797 Category C indecent images on the device. A further 80 extreme porn images involved animals were found.

He had used a cloud storage device more than 3,000 times. Officers discovered he shared 126 indecent files with other paedophiles on WhatsApp under the name Big Little and on Wickr as UKMember123 from November 2020 to January 2021.

When interviewed again, he admitted the phone was his and he had downloaded the files. He claimed he had been addicted to pornography since childhood; wanted to stop offending; and had sought help through courses and books.

Handlon accepted the chats with the officer and sharing the files. He said he just had a massive problem with it but denied ever sexually abusing a child.

He admitted three counts of downloading, three counts of distributing and one count of possessing indecent images of children, plus possessing extreme pornography and breaching his SHPO. Jim Smith, defending, said: This defendant has embarked on a personal crusade to ensure his continuing rehabilitation and enlightenment.

He said Handlon hoped to re-establish a relationship with his parents and his two children, who he was separated from. He hadnt seen them for more than a year.

Mr Smith said Handlon had completed 10 sessions of a Stop It Now! course, and further courses with the child sexual abuse prevention charity the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, costing him almost 1,000. He said Handlon had daily support from a mentor to prevent offending and attended Sex Addicts Anonymous sessions in Liverpool.

He said his clients was genuinely remorseful and a rehabilitation programme and unpaid work attached to his previous community order hadnt addressed his issues. The judge, Recorder Ian Harris, said: The report says he engaged with probation but didnt take his offence seriously at that time.

Mr Smith said: I think thats an interpretation which I dont think properly reflects the efforts, or the lack of specific targeting of the motivations for his offending, which subsequently he has voluntarily submitted to. He added if Handlon was jailed he would lose his job, his children would miss financial support and he would lose his home.

Recorder Harris told Handlon: Im telling you now there will be an immediate custodial sentence. The judge said in a sinister aspect of the case he bought a phone for your paedophile activities.

He said Mr Smith told Liverpool Crown Court Handlons comments about molesting a child were just bravado and he wasnt being sentenced for that. But he enjoyed and shared repulsive images.

He said a report noted Handlon didnt believe he had the support he needed when previously sentenced, but now felt sick. The judge said: You had every opportunity and carried on.

Recorder Harris said Handlon described himself as a paedophile. He said: These offences are vile and reflect the corruption and abuse of young children.

The judge jailed him for three years and 10 months. He made a new 15-year SHPO and told Handlon to sign on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

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Australian sitcom actor Robert Hughes will be freed from jail and deported to the UK after serving a sentence for child sexual abuse. Hughes found fame for his lead role in Australian TV show Hey Dad! which aired in more than 20 countries from 1987. In 2014 he was convicted of a string of child sexual offences - which he denied - against girls in the 1980s and 1990s. The 73-year-old was granted parole by Australian authorities on Thursday. Having renounced his Australian citizenship, the British national will be deported to the UK, where he will live with his wife, upon his release from prison. Hughes has been eligible for parole for more than two years but has twice been denied freedom over concerns about his risk to the community. He and his family deny his crimes but, since his last bid for parole, have promised he will seek psychological treatment when released and that he will have no unsupervised contact with children. UK authorities, who have been informed of his impending release and deportation, have also since confirmed he will be monitored. That - and a psychological assessment that Hughes has a below average risk of offending - was enough to satisfy parole authorities his risk to the community could be managed. He will be released no later than 14 June. 'Systemic, predatory behaviour' Hughes's 2014 trial heard evidence of sexual misconduct which had spanned 20 years. He was convicted of 10 child sexual assault offences against girls aged between seven and 15. He abused his position of trust and exploited the naivety and youth of the children, Judge Peter Zahra said in sentencing at the time. ''The offender engaged in a systematic pattern of sexual abuse upon young girls over a number of years,'' he said. ''His conduct was brazen... he engaged in predatory behaviour.'' On Thursday, parole judge David Frearson acknowledged the decision would be hard for the actor's victims. "It is clear that the profound and deleterious effects on the victims continue to this day and will probably be lifelong consequences," he said. "It must be particularly galling for the victims to observe the offender's continued and obstinate denials in the face of compelling and overwhelming evidence from multiple witnesses." Hey Dad! was hugely popular in Australia and ran for eight seasons until 1994.

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A young girl was pressured and bullied into committing degrading sex acts with a predatory 17-year-old who had already taken advantage of another teenage girl three weeks earlier.

She had been left scared that nobody would believe her if she told anyone what Callum Hilton did to her. She kept quiet about what happened for 10 years before finally speaking up, Hull Crown Court heard.

Hilton, now 30, of Hull, admitted causing or inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity on June 21, 2009. Richard Butters, prosecuting, said that Hilton was aged 17 at the time and the girl was 14, with no sexual experience of any sort before the incident.

Hilton kissed her and asked her to commit a sex act on him. Because of her naivety, she did not know how to do that and Hilton showed her and told her: "You do it just like that." He encouraged her to touch him intimately.

"She was of an age where she didn't have a clue what was going on," said Mr Butters. The girl did what Hilton asked.

"She kept all of this to herself for many years," said Mr Butters. It was not until 10 years later, in June 2019, that the girl spoke to a friend and her mother about what happened and the police were alerted.

The victim later said: "I had not had any sexual experience and I had not received any sex education. I didn't even realise it was wrong. I wanted to report what happened to me so many times but I was so scared that I would not be believed.

"It has affected my confidence and self-esteem. I have always tried to block out what happened but had to constantly think about it over the last couple of years. I feel so relieved that it is finally over and I can move on and rebuild my life."

Hilton had a previous conviction for an offence of unlawful sex with another girl, aged 13, committed in 2009 three weeks before this matter. The girl consented to what happened on that occasion but it was illegal because of her age. He had been locked up for six months.

Hilton had been recalled to prison until December on another matter. Richard Thompson, mitigating, said that Hilton was 17 at the time of the sexual matter but had since committed other different offences regularly over the years and was serving the balance of a prison sentence imposed in March 2020.

"He has been in custody for getting on for a over a year now," said Mr Thompson. "He was recalled for breaching his licence conditions. His earliest date of release is December this year."

Hilton was jailed for five months and will have to register as a sex offender for seven years.

Description

A paedophile who kept more than 10,000 images of child sex abuse has walked free from court.

Andrew Lomax, who worked as a carer for 30 years, stored more than 1,600 videos of child rape in his disturbing collection across a number of devices.

The youngest victim among the child abuse images was an 18-month-old baby girl.

The 45-year-old kept 3,188 videos of children being sexually abused and 8,052 indecent images of children, and in total had 11,240 of the vile images.

Chris Hopkins, prosecuting today at Liverpool Crown Court, explained police acted on "intelligence received" about internet use in a property in Woodchurch, where Lomax was living at the time.

On October 21 last year police went to the address and Lomax said he "knew why police were there" and confessed to having indecent images on his computer.

Lomax told police in an interview they would find "images of toddlers up to the age of about 14 or 15" and admitted he had a sexual interest in children.

Mr Hopkins explained 1,694 of the child rape images were videos and he also had 1,494 videos of other types of child sex abuse.

Lomax stored 2,000 indecent images of children on a computer tower, the earliest of which was created on September 30, 2019 and the most recent was created on June 16 last year.

He kept 1,300 indecent images of children on an Acer Laptop and had 151 prohibited images of children as well as 42 indecent images on a HP laptop, on which the earliest creation date was April 2015.

Lomax stored another 679 prohibited images of children on an external hard drive, on which the earliest creation date was January 2013.

Mr Hopkins explained one of the sex abuse videos involved a baby girl aged 18 months old.

Lomax is of former good character.

Jim Smith, defending, said Lomax had made "frank admissions" and "expressed remorse".

He said Lomax had been a carer for 30 years with the "most vulnerable in society including dementia sufferers" but left the role after his offences came to light.

Mr Smith said: "To his benefit your honour he has acknowledged not only his wrongdoing and criminality but tried to explain and certainly been frank and honest in relation to his offending behaviour."

He said Lomax's relationship had broken down and he "retreated into addictive online voyeurism" and into the "markedly criminal world".

Mr Smith said Lomax was "deeply sorry" and has been working with the Lucy Faithfull Foundation to address his "unhealthy addiction".

He said: "He is trying to do everything he can to rehabilitate himself from this addiction from which he became subservient to for a significant period of time."

Mr Smith said Lomax had suffered anxiety and depression and was an "extremely lonely individual".

Lomax, of Needham Road, Kensington, admitted possession of extreme pornographic images, possession of indecent photographs, three counts of making indecent images and one count of possessing a prohibited image of a child.

Judge Brian Cummings, QC, said: "In order for all these images to be created real children, including babies, have been subjected to the most appalling and damaging abuse, all for the benefit, if that's the word, of you and others like you.