Paedophile was found to have indecent images of children on his phone
A PAEDOPHILE was found in possession of images on his phone of children as young as eight years old being forced to perform degrading sexual acts.
He had already been convicted of possessing indecent images and was subject to a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO).
Matthew Jackson, 21, of Gilwern, Monmouthshire, was convicted of three counts of possessing indecent images of children and of distributing indecent images in 2022. He was made subject to a community order and the SHPO.
A sentencing hearing at Cardiff Crown Court on Thursday heard the defendant’s offender manager conducted an unannounced visit on July 25 last year and looked at his phone. On the screen was a warning message that stated that clicking on a link may result in the accessing of indecent images of children or extreme pornography.
Prosecutor Christopher Evans said Jackson told the offender manager he had viewed “teen pornography” through an online link.
There was also an app which had the appearance of a calculator but when a passcode was entered it allowed access to hidden images on the phone. The app was encrypted and the images could not be accessed without the passcode, which was provided by the defendant.
A total of four Category A images, one Category B image and one Category C image were discovered, along with 32 “indicative” images. One of the Category A images depicted a child between the ages of eight and 10 years old. The defendant was also found with a Google One account, which he was banned from possessing.
Jackson, of Kennelwood, pleaded
guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children and three counts of breaching an SHPO.
Judge Paul Hopkins KC made reference to the defendant’s interview with probation during which he made “flippant comments” and said: “It’s only going to be a suspended sentence.”
In mitigation, Julia Cox said her client was “nervous” during the interview but there was a degree of “openness and honesty” about what he had been doing when visited by the offender manager.
She said the defendant had been unable to carry out any rehabilitation activity through the Horizon programme, for men convicted of sexual offences.
Sentencing, Judge Paul Hopkins KC said: “The bravado demonstrated by you in the course of your interview with the probation service is indicative of a high level of immaturity... I am satisfied the level of maturity you demonstrated is of significance to this case.”
Jackson was sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months. He was ordered to carry out 120 hours’ unpaid work and to pay court costs of £250.