May 2008

Dad had child porn pictures

A FAMILY man who downloaded child porn from a US-based website posted some of the material back on the Internet – a court heard.

Nicholas Varela (50) was tracked down through his user name “Badlands”.

The father-of-two was given a suspended jail term when he appeared for sentencing at Preston Crown Court. He received 12 months in prison, suspended for two years, with two years’ supervision and a requirement to take part in an Internet sex offenders’ programme.

The defendant, of Manchester Road, Burnley, had admitted 12 offences of making indecent images of children and four of distributing them.

Mr Jacob Dyer (prosecuting) said an investigation began as a result of the defendant using a US-based website to post indecent images and a warrant was executed at his home in November 2006. His computer was seized and checks showed there were a huge number of images on the computer, mostly relating to legal adult porn.

There were 349 indecent images of children, too. The prosecution said that most of them were categorised as the lowest level of seriousness but there were 10 images at levels 2 and 3, five at level 4 and three at level 5, the most serious.

Mr Tim Storrie (defending) said none of the images were ever burned onto a disc. Varela had had a period of reflection over the past two years and there had been a “full confessional effect”.

Mr Storrie said the defendant had had an evident naivety when initially using computers.

Since the offences, he had sought help and been to counselling. His barrister said: “The proceedings have obliterated his good name and his standing in the community. He feels shame and remorse. He has developed an awarensss of the seriousness of what he was doing. It has become more apparent to him as the months have gone by.”

The defendant will be on the Sex Offenders’ Register for 10 years.