April 2015
A man who had indecent images of children as young as four on his computer has avoided a prison sentence.
Officers who executed a search warrant at Hesket Newmarket in January last year discovered that Matthew Spencer, 25, had downloaded hundreds of still and moving pictures during a 20-month period at the address.
More than 40 of the images were found to be of the most serious type – category A.
At Carlisle Crown Court, Spencer pleaded guilty to 10 charges of making indecent images of children.
He escaped a jail term, Judge Paul Batty QC ordering him instead to comply with a three-year sex offender treatment programme in a bid to ensure the crimes are not repeated.
Spencer, now of Denton Mill Close, Carlisle, was placed under supervision for three years and must sign the sex offenders’ register for five years.
He was also made subject to an order which prohibits him from accessing computers or the internet without police-approved monitoring equipment.
