Latest Offenders

Description

A Margate man who raped a woman on a Ramsgate beach has been jailed for eight years following an investigation by the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate.

Oliver Cooper, 20 and of St Michaels Avenue, committed the offence in August 2016 and was found guilty following a trial in December 2017.

He was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court today (February 2) and, further to his custodial sentence, will appear on the sex offenders register indefinitely.

The court had previously heard that Cooper was known to his victim and they had agreed to meet.

During this meeting however, in the early hours of 7 August, he grabbed hold of her throat and raped her on the beach.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Tania Pickering of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate said: Cooper is a predatory sex offender who has failed to acknowledge the impact his behaviour has had on his victim.

After first putting her through a harrowing and demeaning ordeal, he then made her face the anguish of going through a criminal trial.

Her courage and bravery has been exemplary and, while the sentence cannot undo the damage Cooper has done, I hope the victim can take comfort from the fact justice has been served.

Description

A VILE paedophile who threatened a teenager into sending sexual videos of her and her brother has been jailed for 12 years.

Daniel Norton, 26, told the Hampshire girl that his father was a police officer and if she did not send pictures and videos of herself he would "take her away from her family".

Southampton Crown Court heard that he also made threats to distribute pictures and videos of the victim on the internet if she did not send more.

Eventually when the victim, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, said she did not want to send them, the images were put on the internet and went viral.

It forced Hampshire Constabulary to issue a warning to parents, urging them to tell their children not to pass on the disturbing video.

Norton, of Cheadle, Stockport, was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment, with three years on extended licence.

Norton admitted three counts of causing a child to engage in sexual activity between October 1 and December 1, 2017.

He also pleaded guilty to making dozens of indecent moving images of children - across all three categories of severity - and possessing extreme pornographic images - which depicted children involved in sexual activity with animals.

Description

More than 500,000 images showing children of a variety of ages were recovered from David Allison's computer equipment A man who hoarded more than half a million indecent images of children, including some photos taken at a school and showing girls' underwear, has been jailed for three years. David Allison, of Moat Court, Shaw Close, Ottershaw, was sentenced at Guildford Crown Court last Friday (January 26), after previously pleading guilty to three counts of making indecent photos of a child, one count of taking images of a child and two counts of voyeurism by installing equipment or constructing or adapting a structure. The 48-year-old was arrested on November 29 last year in an intelligence-led search warrant at his home. Police recovered more than 500,000 indecent images showing children of a variety of ages from Allison's computer equipment. They included 5,038 category A images - the worst level - 8,693 category B images and 84,300 category C images. The court heard there were so many photos that police have not yet had time to look through them all since Allison's arrest. He took photos on his camera, but also with a camera pen and on his iPad. On one occasion Allison left the camera on his iPad poking out of the top of a bag while recording, the court was told. Lee Harris, prosecuting, said: "He would put it in a camera bag with the camera poking out the top and leave it in a place where it could film in the school. "It was premeditated and the stills were opportunist. There was one picture in particular of a person getting changed in a school classroom," Mr Harris added. Allison appeared for sentencing via video link from HMP High Down and sat with his head bowed throughout most of the hearing. Mr Harris continued: "He accepted he was responsible for downloading the images and also admitted he recently accessed a live streaming website but felt he was crossing a line. "He kept the images and movies on a single hard drive and one day said he would draw a line in it and put the disc through the shredder." Summing up, Judge Robert Fraser said: "It is very clear no-one knew what you were doing. This was by a very clear description very concerning." 'Ashamed and disgusted' Sarah Read, defending, said Allison, an ex-teacher, fully understood he needed to be punished. "He is deeply ashamed and disgusted in himself and is aware fully of the far-reaching impact on those that are affected," she told the court. "There will have been plenty of people who would have been impacted positively by him and he knows fully well those people will be shocked to see where he is now." Allison was also handed a lifetime Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) and was placed on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

Description

A former steward at Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth has been jailed after he was caught in sting by paedophile hunters.

Michael Watton, 56, thought he was meeting a 14-year-old girl for sex at Paignton train station, but was instead confronted by a group of men with a video camera.

They asked him about messages he had exchanged with several children – who were in fact fake profiles – and he admitted arranging to take the girl for a Chinese meal and booking them into a bed and breakfast for sex.

The defendant, who lives in Dartmouth, admitted three offences relating to his online activities and was jailed for 16 months by the judge at Exeter Crown Court.

The defence barrister, Ms Mary McCarthy, argued that in the real world no teenage girl would have found the bearded and balding Watton attractive enough to have sex with. She said the punishment should be a community order.

She also questioned the role of online vigilante groups who ‘encourage’ lonely men like Watton to commit offences. The defence barrister, Ms Mary McCarthy, argued that in the real world no teenage girl would have found Watton attractive enough to have sex with. She said the punishment should be a community order.

She also questioned the role of online vigilante groups who ‘encourage’ lonely men like Watton to commit offences.

But Judge Erik Salomonsen said the number of fake children he contacted meant he should be sent straight to jail.

The offences took place in October last year.

Prosecutor Julia Cox said the three charges related to chats the defendant had with ‘Katy’ ‘Jess’ and ‘Ellie-May’.

Katy had been set up as a decoy by the group Dark Justice.

Watton soon struck up a conversation on the dating site Qeep asking if she was single and how old she was, said the prosecutor.

He told the 14-year-old that he would love to have sex with her and get her pregnant. He then talked about meeting her in Newcastle but did not attend.

Jess, 10, was also a decoy. Watton again asked how old the girl was and whether she’d ever had sex.

Ellie-May, 14, was a decoy set up by Internet Interceptors.

Ms Cox told the court that Watton quickly moved the conversation on to sex, asking if she was a virgin and arranging to meet at Paignton Railway Station on October 21.

“He was met by individuals from paedophile hunter groups,” she said. “They spoke to him and recorded what was going on.”

Watton accepted he was there to meet a 14-year-old. He said he planned to take her to the cinema, buy her a Chinese then use a B&B for sex.

The court was told the defendant had no relevant previous convictions.

Ms McCarthy, mitigating, said: “He was on an adult dating site and out of loneliness wanting to meet adult women. The concern expressed by other judges is the concern of decoys appearing on this adult site as actively encouraging people who wouldn’t otherwise talk to young people down the lane of these offences.”

She said Watton was a bearded 50-year-old man and his profile picture made this clear.

“Without being rude to Mr Watton in the real world no young child would engage with him,” she said. “He didn’t pose as a young attractive person.”

She said he found ‘to his astonishment there were apparently young girls out there wanting to engage with him’.

“In the real world matters wouldn’t have progressed as they did. He is a lonely man living with his mother.”

Judge Salomonsen said he appreciated the point made by Ms McCarthy but the number of girls Watton tried to speak to made the offences more serious.

“You embarked on these exchanges with not one but 10 in all. Given that fact it seems to me this sentence must be served in prison.”

The defendant pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted sexual communication with a child and one of attempting to meet a child for sex following online grooming.

He asked for seven further offences to be taken into consideration.

Watton, of Church Road, Dartmouth, was also made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Description

A charity worker who arranged to meet girls under the age of 14 for sex in hotels has escaped jail so he can 'get help'.

Toni Stevens asked at least 39 underage girls for 'naughty pictures' and threesomes before he was caught by a vigilante paedophile hunting group who had set up the decoy accounts.

The group called police and Stevens was arrested at the scene on November 27, 2017.

During the sting Stevens said: 'I'm ashamed of myself' and hung his head while listening to chat logs from his conversations over WhatsApp.

The 32-year-old pleaded guilty to charges of engaging in sexual communication with a child and attempting to cause a child aged 13 to 15 to watch or look at an image of sexual activity at Plymouth Magistrates' Court last November. 

He was handed a 12 months suspended for two years and ordered to attend 20 days of rehabilitation at Exeter Crown Court today. 

His defence counsel Mr Michael Brown had asked the court to show mercy on Stevens who 'acknowledged he had a problems with his behaviour'.  

Stevens was also issued with a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 10 years, which will prevent him from working with children and was also ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for a decade.

Judge Graham Cottle told him: 'If you are in breach of the order by committing further offences then you will be brought back to court and serve this sentence.'  

In chat logs the community volunteer discussed having a threesome with his ex-girlfriend and sent nude pictures of himself.

As part of the sting, members of the Plymouth Against group set up decoy profiles and spoke to Mr Stevens over messaging apps. 

In the messages exchanged between Mr Stevens and the decoy, the conversation quickly turns from general chit-chat to sexually explicit content despite the paedophile knowing the account he was talking to was supposedly 14-years-old. 

Paedophile hunter Chris, 42, who was involved in the sting, said: 'Toni had been speaking to at least 39 underage girls online and had arranged to meet a lot of girls countrywise. 

'He told [several decoys] he would book a hotel room to facilitate the threesome.

'In this sting, he originally told the decoy to meet him at Taunton Travelodge. He'd arranged to meet our other decoys in Coventry, Birmingham and Manchester.

'Strangely, he had no intention of actually meeting up with any of them. We knew he wasn't going to turn up to the meetings, so we called the charity that he volunteered at called Hele's Angels.' 

At the time of Toni's arrest, the charity Hele's Angels, which supports the local community, claim Toni never had contact with children while working there.

Today, Dani Skillin, a volunteer at the charity, said: 'Hele's Angels are looking forward to the future and moving on without Toni Stevens.' 

Description

David Hack thought he was going to meet a girl called Felicity who he had chatted up online but instead he was confronted by members of a Plymouth based vigilante group.
 
The girl did not exist and he had been trapped by a female paedophile hunter from Wales who had passed on details of the rendezvous to the Plymouth group.
Hack, 34, met the fictitious girl on the Badoo and Hot or Not websites where she used the profile Felicity30 but told him she was 15.

He claimed he had been trying to give her sex education after he was trapped by the sting operation and interviewed by police.
During his web chats with Felicity he suggested she should touch herself sexually and he sent her an image which he said was of his penis.
He did not suggest they have full sex when they met and discussed waiting for her 16th birthday, Exeter Crown Court was told.
He made the online contact at a time when he was lonely and isolated because he lived in a small village in the South Hams where he was the full-time carer for his seriously ill grandmother.

David Hack, 34, from Churchstow, admitted attempting to meet a child following grooming and attempting to incite a girl to engage in sexual activity.
He was jailed for 16 months, suspended for two years and ordered to attend a sex offenders programme and do 10 days of rehabilitation activities by Judge Erik Salomonsen.
Hack was ordered to sign on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years and made subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, which restricts his contact with children and allows the police to monitor his online activity.
The judge told him:"There came a time when you went to Morrisons in Kingsbridge intending to make contact and meet. The purpose for that in your mind was unclear and there is no specific indication of sexual activity when you arranged to meet.

"In fact Felicity did not exist and had been created by a member of a paedophile hunting group. You were set up and succumbed to what you saw online."
He said he was suspending the sentence so Hack could continue to care for his grandmother and could undergo a treatment programme that was only available in the community.
Caroline Bolt, prosecuting, said a paedophile hunter from Wales named Jackie Kempson had created the online profile of Felicity which had attracted the interest of Hack.
Chat logs showed their conversation became sexualised after initial contact on November 7 and led to him suggesting a meeting at Morrison’s in Kingsbridge on November 18.

He was intercepted by members of Plymouth Against Paedophiles, who had been alerted by Ms Kempson, and who detained him until police arrived.
James Taghdissian, defending, said Hack is the main carer for his frail 84-year-old grandmother, who could not cope on her own without him. His role meant he was lonely and socially isolated.
He said Hack initially thought Felicity was 30 because of her profile name but accepts he carried on the web chats after she said she was 15.
He said Hack had suggested waiting until she was 16 before they had sex and had told her he did not want to do anything too sexual when they met.

Mr Taghdissian said:"He was not searching for a young child but came across somebody who initially purported to be much older. He was also told she was shortly turning 16 and there was a discussion about what they may do on her birthday."

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Former DJ James Russell 'is disgusted with himself' after distributing vile footage of 'extremely young' children A former DJ has been jailed for sharing videos of babies being raped with fellow paedophiles. James Russell turned to drink, drugs and sharing child sex abuse images after his fiance left him, Bristol Crown Court heard. And when he sent on movies of babies being raped he claimed he was the rapist. But when police caught up with the 36-year-old, he told them the suggestion had just been fantasy. Russell, of Leinster Avenue in Knowle West, pleaded guilty to three charges of making an indecent image of a child and two charges of distributing an indecent image of a child. Judge Euan Ambrose jailed him for two years. He told Russell: The most striking feature was the extremely young age of the children involved in the worst of this material, which was also material you chose to distribute. Russell was handed a ten-year sexual harm prevention order, designed to stop his reoffending. He was told to register as a sex offender and his computer equipment was destroyed. Caighli Taylor, prosecuting, said police established that child abuse material was downloaded to a digital address linked to Russell. When police knocked on his door he told them: Its on there. Im going to be honest, its me, its on there. Russell was found to have 171 pictures at the most serious Category A level of concern depicting sexual abuse of children, including 18 movies. Miss Taylor said ages of youngsters being abused ranged from 18 months to nine. She said Russell had distributed two Category A movies to two recipients. They each showed a baby being raped. She told the court: It is clear Mr Russell was engaging with one person, suggesting he was the abuser in the video. In interview he said that was just fantasy. There is no suggestion he had been involved in that. Katie Jenkins, defending, said after her clients fiance left him he drank heavily, took cocaine and viewed child abuse material. Miss Jenkins said Russell, who used to spend time as a DJ, spiralled into depression and was too embarrassed to get help. She said: He was frightened about what would happen if he disclosed to his GP what was taking place. He is disgusted with himself. For a long time he was, in many ways, in denial.

Description

A former firefighter from Bangor has been handed a seven and a half year prison sentence for sexually assaulting three teenage girls after plying them with drink and drugs at his party house in the town.

Shamed William Rowan Ferguson pleaded guilty to charges of rape and sexual activity with girls under 16.

Ferguson aged 47 now with an address at Crumlin Road based in North Belfast further admitted inciting a child under 16 to engage in sexual activity and also sexual assault.

Following his guilty pleas, a prosecution lawyer asked for a number of other offences to be left on the books and not to be processed without the leave of the crown court or the court of appeal.

Downpatrick crown court sitting in Belfast, heard that one of the girls recounted how there was regular parties at Fergusons home in Bangor where they were given drink and drugs.

The offences were committed between January 1st 2015 and April 2016.

The court was told that Ferguson threatened the girls with paramilitary action if they spoke out.

Last Friday, February 9th, Ferguson stood in the dock of Belfast recorder court dressed in a grey two pIEce suit and shirt and clutching a walking stick.

Belfast recorder judge David McFarland told Ferguson that had he contested the charges and be found guilty he would of jailed him for total of 10 years for what he described as significant offences. T

he judge said that although Ferguson had made some admissions in the police station he denied the charges in court. Judge McFarland said he was aware that there had been some discussions between his defence and the prosecution even though a trial date had been fixed but he said that the public would not have been aware that these discussions were going on in the background.

The judge added the victims in this case and their families would of heard you had entered not guilty pleas and that there was going to be a trail despite any assurances given to them by the prosecution.

The Belfast recorder said this would have caused significant difficulties for members of the public particularly the victims particularly when they are evidence is going to be challenged and cross examined about the truthfulness of their accounts that can be a traumatic experience for a witness preparing to give evidence.

The judge said that finally admitting his guilt Ferguson was telling your family and the wider public that you did do this to the victims and they were telling the truth. You cant deny that. It is a public admission by you that what you did was wrong, by your guilty pleas the victims were spared the traumatic experience of having to give evidence and also spared the public purse the cost of an expensive trial.

Judge mcfarland said that as a result of Fergusons late guilty plea he was reducing the ten year sentence to one of seven and a half years saying half of the sentence would be spent in custody with the remainder spent on supervised licence upon his release.

The sentence imposed was four years for rape which was consecutive to a three and a half year sentence for the offences of sexual activity by an adult with a child aged 13-16, an adult committing a sex act with a child and causing/inciting a child to engage in sexual activity. He received a further 6 month concurrent sentence for sexual assault.

Ferguson was placed on the sex offenders register for the rest of his life and he also made the subject of conditions under a sexual offenders prevention order on his release from jail.

He is banned from approaching children under the age of 16 without reasonable excuse, he is not aloud in a motor vehicle with a person under the age of 16 without the approval of his designated risk manager, he is also not aloud to enter into a relationship of an intimate nature without notifying his risk manager, at the end of his sentencing remarks

Judge McFarland told prison guards take him down.

There was emotional scenes in the public gallery where the victims sat with the families, with some hurling abuse at Ferguson as he was taken to the cells below.

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Connor Benjamin Allen-Howe targeted boys aged between 12 and 15.

A "devious and manipulative" paedophile from Colchester who used the internet to corrupt and abuse up to 20 children has been told his eight-year jail term was not a day too long.

Connor Benjamin Allen-Howe, 22, of Shakespeare Road, Colchester, was aged between 16 and 18 when he posed as a teenage girl online to persuade a host of boys, aged between 12 and 15, to perform sex acts on camera.

He also sometimes posed as a multi-millionaire offering "gifts" to witness sex acts performed by his under-age victims.

Sick Allen-Howe went even further, persuading some of his victims to become part of his "army of deviants" by sexually abusing their own younger siblings, and even pets, whilst he watched remotely.

They included causing or inciting child prostitution or pornography and making indecent photographs of children.

At London's Appeal Court today, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb heard Allen-Howe plead for a shorter sentence, claiming he was treated too harshly.

The judge, sitting with Lady Justice Hallett and Judge Martin Picton, said Allen-Howe had "catfished" his victims - posing as someone he was not online.

Lawyers for Allen-Howe argued that he had been given a sentence appropriate for an adult and his own tender years ought to have resulted in a shorter term.

But the appeal judge said that "catfishing has the potential to result in serious psychological harm to victims."

"Such behaviour has to be severely punished," she added.

"Twenty victims were abused by, or at the behest of, Allen-Howe," she went on, branding him "devious and manipulative."

"We cannot conclude that, with the breadth and length of the offending in this case, the sentence was wrong in principle.

Description

Released on 7 June 2022 A PAEDOPHILE who targeted children online has been jailed for six years. Daniel Dean, 23, of Symonds Yat, pleaded guilty to a string of child sexual offences committed online and was sentenced at Hereford Crown Court last week. He was first arrested in April 2016 by Warwickshire Police and West Mercia Police officers who are part of Operation Safenet, which targets suspected paedophiles operating online. Dean was then re-arrested in July 2016 after officers discovered evidence on his computer and devices, which showed he had been engaging with children on a number of internet platforms, and inciting them to commit sexual offences. A large collection of indecent images of children was also found. Detective Inspector Gavin Kinrade said: "This has been a complex investigation involving multiple victims and a significant volume of digital media, which officers have painstakingly had to view in order to identify and safeguard victims. "I would like to thank the many victims who have bravely come forward and helped throughout the process. Their assistance has been an essential part of bringing this case before the courts." Dean pleaded guilty to the following charges: 13 counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity; two counts of causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity; two counts of inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity; six counts of making indecent photographs of a child; one count of distributing an indecent photograph of a child; and one count of voyeurism. DI Kinrade added: "Daniel Dean used false personas on the internet to engage with children and incite them to commit offences for his own gratification. On numerous occasions he threatened to expose images and videos of the children if they refused to carry out his demands. "Many of the victims will have been at home when offences were committed, and their parents no doubt believed they were safe. "I'd like to take this opportunity to urge parents and guardians to make sure they have a full, frank discussion with their children about how to protect themselves online. There are some great resources out there to help - from the NSPCC, and from Childline, for example." Dean was sentenced to six years in prison, and will be on licence for four years when eventually released. He was also ordered to register as a sex offender for life, and has been given an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order. To report a crime like this, phone the police non-emergency number 101. Always call 999 in an emergency. If you'd like to give information without leaving your name or identifying details, phone the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555111 or go to crimestoppers-uk.org.

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A FORMER teacher at a Hampshire school has been jailed for 12 years for child sex offences.

Ian Atkinson taught at St Neots Preparatory School, in Eversley, Hook, and was jailed on Wednesday (January 10) after being found guilty of nine offences following a six-day trial at Bradford Crown Court.

The offences include six charges of indecent assault on a boy, one charge of inciting a boy to commit an act of gross indecency with him, and two of making (downloading) indecent images of children.

Four of the offences took place in Hampshire. The contact offences occurred in the 1990s and 2000s and the indecent images were discovered in 2015 when officers seized the 59 year old's laptop following his arrest.

Atkinson, of Brompton on Regis, Somerset was also placed on the sex offenders register for life and issued with a sexual harm prevention order.

Following sentencing, investigating officer, Detective Constable Fiona Ayre of North Yorkshire Police, said: "Appallingly, Atkinson used his position of trust to abuse young boys for his own sexual gratification and the sentence reflects the serious and protracted nature of his offending.

"I praise the victims for having the courage to relive their ordeals in court and I hope the outcome can help them to move forward.

"I would reassure any victim of such offences that if they should not hesitate in coming forward to the police. It doesn't matter when the abuse happened, whether it's happening now or occurred 50 years ago.

"Even if it is not possible to put an offender before the courts, it's important that you are offered the support and advice that is available. Your information could also help to protect other victims and help the police form a wider picture of offending.

"We appreciate that telling the police what has happened takes courage. It is not easy reliving such distressing situations. We understand this and have specially trained officers who will guide you through the process as well as signposting you to other agencies who can help you.

"Child sexual abuse is a foremost priority for the police and all reports will be fully investigated. Please do not suffer alone, if you have been abused, please report it."

An NSPCC spokesperson added: "This was every parent's worst nightmare; an awful betrayal of trust in which Atkinson used his position to abuse his young victims for his own twisted gratification.

"The vulnerable boys this sick predator claimed to be helping have had their childhoods ruined and abuse such as this can last a lifetime in its horrifying impact.

"We hope all Atkinson's victims receive the support they need to overcome their awful childhood ordeals in settings that should have been safe and secure havens."

Description

Three men who forced a 14-year-old girl into prostitution and "plied her with drugs" have been sentenced for sexual exploitation offences.

Jake Cairns, 21, was sentenced to eight years, while Brandon Sharples, 20, and Jack McInally, 21, were given five years in prison.

The men took explicit photos of the teenager and posted an advert of her on an escort site, claiming she was 18.

The men, all from Coventry, were found guilty of the offences in November.

The girl was held at an address in Coventry for five days and a missing person inquiry was launched when she disappeared from a relative's home on 8 June 2015.

For three days men visited the property and paid for sex with the teenager; West Midlands Police believe about 20 men were forced on her.

On 13 June 2015, police raided the house and rescued her. She was found dressed only in her underwear and trying to climb out of a first floor window.

Cairns, of Cheveral Avenue in Radford, Sharples, 20, of Wyley Road in Radford and McInally, 21, of no fixed address, were arrested on suspicion of child abduction.

'Hellish ordeal'

DNA discovered on a duvet in a room where the girl was held was found to have come from five people, including Cairns.

All three men were sentenced for arranging or facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child and facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child.

Cairns was additionally charged with distributing indecent photographs of a child.

The trio were also given 10-year sexual harm prevention orders and ordered to sign on to the sex offenders register for life.

An NSPCC spokesperson said: "These predators callously exploited a vulnerable teenage girl and forced her to endure a hellish ordeal.

"These sentences show that victims of child sexual abuse can get justice and highlight the importance of reporting concerns that a child or young person is being sexually exploited."

Description

A former West Midlands Police constable and ex-serviceman who downloaded sickening child pornography films has escaped going to jail.

Father-of-two James Duffield, who told police he had been sexually assaulted as a child, was found to have pictures of children as young as four on his laptop.

Duffield, 34, from Solihull, had previously admitted three charges of making indecent images.

He was handed a 12-month suspended sentence.

Philip Brunt, prosecuting at Birmingham Crown Court, said Duffield downloaded 106 movies of categories A, B and C.

“The police received information that an IP address had been downloading indecent images,” he said.

“As a result, a warrant was issued to attend and search that address on August 23 last year.

“They attended in the early hours of the morning, knocked on the door and went inside.

“They recovered a large number of internet-enabled devices.

“In particular they were interested in two laptop computers.

“It was on the laptop computers that the indecent images were found.

“There is also evidence on the computers of various search terms such as ‘Paedo Mum’.”

Mr Brunt said the images had been accessed between December and April 2015.

When quizzed, Duffield – who quit as a policeman before he was sentenced – initially said he had downloaded films and other items but never knowingly indecent images.

But he later made a full confession.

Mr Brunt said: “He commented in that interview that he himself had been abused as a child and that led, in some part, to his accessing the images.

“He did make revelations that were investigated by the local police force but that investigation led nowhere.”

Mr Brunt said the ages of the children who were abused ranged from four to ten and the longest movie was 17 minutes.

Passing sentence, Judge Simon Drew QC said: “You had a career in the services and also in the police force and, at the time of the commission, of these offences you were a serving police officer.

“You are one of the least people one would expect to be before the court for offences of this sort.

“The real gravamen of these offences is not your conduct but the impact on those who appear in those images.”

But the judge accepted the future risk he posed was relatively low.

Adrian Keeling QC, defending, said: “Duffield was abused when he was younger.

“He made no complaint at the time and therefore received no help or assistance.

“The first time he came cross any of these images was on file sharing software and it chimed with what happened to him.

“He has already suffered quite a heavy degree of punishment.

“First he had lost his good name and secondly he has lost his job.

“He resigned immediately.

“That has caused financial strains and pressures upon his family which hurt him deeply.”

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imgbb Photo not received Released Monday 20th June 2022 An Eastbourne man has been jailed for four years for rape. Paul Simon Hearn, 44, a cleaner, of St Anthonys Avenue, was sentenced at Hove Crown Court on Thursday December 21. Hearn had pleaded not guilty but was convicted by a jury. He was also sentenced to six months imprisonment having been convicted of harassment causing fear of violence against a woman. The six-month sentence will run consecutively to the four-year sentence. Hearn had pleaded not guilty to all offences. The case followed an investigation by detectives from the East Sussex Safeguarding Investigations Unit.

Description

A LONG-SERVING paramedic and Scout volunteer allegedly posed as his 'widowed wife' online to find a young girl to abuse.

John Pattison was on leave after being injured working for the South Central Ambulance Service when he began using chatrooms to discuss abusing children, prosecutors said.

He began speaking with someone he believed was the father of a girl, but was in fact an undercover police officer, and arranged to meet at a branch of Sainsbury's, it was heard.

When he was arrested, his laptop and phone were seized. Indecent images of children were discovered.

Pattison, of Mallow Close in Christchurch, admitted nine counts of possessing indecent photographs of a child and one of possessing an extreme pornographic image.

The defendant, who previously helped at the 49th Bournemouth Air Scouts, appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court for sentence on Monday.

Rob Welling, prosecuting, said: "The defendant engaged with an undercover police officer looking for those who would be attracted to meeting with young children.

"There was chat between him and this officer.

"It resulted in the defendant going to Sainsbury's to meet a man he believed was called John, John's wife and John's young daughter."

Mr Welling said Pattison and 'John' had discussed their desire to abuse children.

"There was conversation by the defendant, who was pretending to be his widowed wife - something he had done on previous occasions," Mr Welling said.

"On previous occasions, he had been 'let down'."

Pattison was not charged in relation to the offences relating to 'John'.

During police interview, the defendant, 44, told police the images found on his devices had been sent to him by others.

He did not find images of abuse "sexually alluring" and had tried, on several occasions, to report the image as abuse "to bring those who sent it to justice", he said.

Nick Robinson, mitigating, said Pattison has no previous offences.

"He is deeply ashamed and has expressed remorse," Mr Robinson said.

"He accepts how serious this is. He is demonstrably ashamed and incredibly emotional."

Judge Brian Forster QC told the defendant: "Following injury in the course of your duties, you have been at home, possibly with too much time to fill.

"You have become, in a sense, addicted to going to the chatroom that has brought about this appearance before the court today."

Pattison, who clutched his chest and shook during the hearing, covered his face as Judge Forster said he still had the support of family.

"You are fortunate," the judge said.

"I have been able to consider not only the content of the pre-sentence report, but the references which have been provided to me.

"They speak of this being totally out of character."

Pattison was sentenced to a three-year community order with a 60-day sex offenders programme. He will also be the subject of a sexual harm prevention order, and must comply with notification requirements for five years.

A spokesperson from The Scout Association said: "The association is aware of the court proceedings involving John Pattison and has co-operated fully with the statutory agencies throughout this investigation.

"It is appropriate that he has pleaded guilty and will be suitably punished for his crimes. Pattison was suspended from all involvement with the Scout Movement as soon as we were made aware of the investigation.

"Pattison will never be allowed to volunteer with us again. It has been confirmed to us by the relevant authorities that none of Pattison victims in this case were Scouts and his offences have no connection to Scouting."