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National
Rob Kennedy

Cramlington pervert's collection of indecent images included young children in distress

A pervert whose sickening collection of indecent images including young children in pain and distress has been spared prison.

Police went to Jack Edwards' home as a result of information received on November 3 2020 and seized his Google Pixel phone and they found a small number of child abuse images and evidence he had been searching for indecent images. Officers went back in August 2021 and found more indecent images on an iPhone.

In total, Edwards had 227 of the most serious, category A images, 97 category B and 22 category C. The children in the images were aged between two and 15. Examples referred to included a three-year-old screaming and crying while being abused, the court heard.

Read more: Gosforth domestic violence thug who strangled and dragged partner by hair walks free

Edwards, 25, of Greystoke Place, Cramlington, pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children. He was sentenced to 12 months suspended for two years and must do a sex offender treatment programme. He will also be on the sex offenders register and subject to a sexual harm prevention order for ten years.

Recorder Andrew Smith, at Newcastle Crown Court, told him: "The suggestion you've got no sexual interest in children is completely unlikely. You might not want to admit it but the only reason people look at material like this is there's a fascination about what's going on and an interest in it that equates to a common sense view of someone who's interested in children.

"People who are interested in looking at this material do pose a risk going forward to children.

"It's four- and five-year-old children being raped, who can do nothing about it. That behaviour is going to continue because there's a market for looking at videos like this from people like you.

"Some of them are particularly disgraceful situations....(involving) discernible pain." The judge added that the public would be best protected by Edwards working with the probation service.

The court heard he was feeling lonely and depressed at the time and was "mixing with the wrong people" online.

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