November 2020

Paedo who was spared jail for hoarding 300,000 child abuse images downloaded more weeks later

A pervert who was spared jail for having over 300,000 child sexual abuse images on his computer and then downloaded more indecent material just weeks later has avoided prison again.

James Moran breached the rules of his sexual harm prevention order by using a laptop which he hadn’t disclosed to the police.

It came to light when the registered sex offender mentioned owning a computer during a meeting with his probation officer, not long after being given a two-year suspended sentence for hoarding 300,000 child abuse images in November 2018.

When the police seized the laptop the following March, it was found to contain three indecent images and 23 movies of the most serious category A.

Mold Crown Court today heard the 55-year-old of Ceg Y Ffordd, Prestatyn claimed he didn’t know he had to inform police about the laptop or that he was in breach of the order.

When he was arrested, he said he’d bought the laptop some years ago but gave it to his father who had only recently returned it to him.

Andrew Green prosecuting said: “The officers spoke to the defendant’s father and he gave a very different account.

“He explained that he’d given the laptop back to him around Christmas 2018, so it was then clear that it was the defendant and not his father who was responsible for the new downloads.”

When he was interviewed, Moran answered no comment and a further police investigation allowed officers to attribute the laptop to him after discovering he’d checked into a hotel with it and used its wifi.

He later pleaded guilty to three charges of making indecent images and one charge of breaching a sexual harm prevention order.

Addressing Moran, Judge Niclas Parry said: “It’s frankly unbelievable that you could stand there, look me in the eye and look very pleased that you’d been given a chance, and then within eight to 12 weeks, you’re doing exactly the same…the same means perpetuating a market for young children to be sexually abused.

“Some of these images were horrific.”

He added: “…If the public were to be protected by an order in the community then, this offending so early simply emphasises the point.

“My fear that you have a total disregard for this order can be answered by the excellent response that there has been subsequently.

“A long time has passed, there’s been no further reoffending but importantly, you’ve kept every appointment, you’ve completed the unpaid work and I can still find in those circumstances that there’s a realistic prospect of rehabilitation.”

After questioning whether immediate custody was “absolutely essential” amid the pandemic, the judge decided to impose a two year sentence suspended for two years. and order Moran to carry out a further 200 hours of unpaid work.

“The suspended sentence itself must be made more onerous because of the breach and it seems to me that adding 20 days rehabilitation requirement…is again, the most constructive way of protecting the public and more importantly, young children,” the judge added.

 

November 2018

Man who hoarded 300,000 child abuse images spared jail

A man who had so many child sex images on his computer police were not able to categorise them all has been spared jail.

James Moran had more than 300,000 vile videos and pictures on his hard-drive – which he had claimed he’d bought at a car boot sale.

But many of them pre-dated the time he said he’d bought it.

They included children aged from six months to 17 years, and were kept in hidden files with names such as “more work”.

He had used specialist software to conduct internet searches for terms like “jail bait gallery”.

But today Moran, 53, walked out of Mold Crown Court after a judge said he believed he could be rehabilitated.

If he went to prison he would lose his job, his defence barrister told the court.

Judge Niclas Parry told Moran: “You were clearly looking for images of very young children”.

Moran, of Ceg y Fford in Prestatyn, initially denied being responsible but later when he was alone he said it was him and he volunteered his laptop saying “it is all on there”.

He had made 18,186 images and 99 movies – 220 of them of the most serious type, Category A.

Prosecutor Ryan Rothwell said a further 293,800 images and films had been found but because of the sheer number of them they had not been categorised.

Judge Parry told Moran: “You now accept that your thinking can only be described as distorted and you need to address serious issues.”

He had already started to do that voluntarily, and the judge said he felt there was a realistic prospect of rehabilitation, which was why he was not going to jail him.

Moran was given a 14 months suspended sentence which will hang over him for two years, 60 days rehabilitation and 200 hours’ community service.