Abergele student banned from surfing for porn over child images

Jun 10 2010 by David Powell, North Wales Weekly News

A MATURE student who downloaded child porn on a college computer was last week banned from accessing any online indecent images for five years.

Robert James Kenneth May, 42, was spotted by staff at Coleg Llandrillo in Abergele surfing certain websites and acting “furtively”.

They became suspicious, police were called in and he was arrested. Officers found May had 78 indecent images, including some of children in swimwear, on his computer’s pen drive. He told them he had been “stupid”.

May, of Berthglyd, Abergele, admitted five counts of making indecent images of children on the campus between July 30, 2006, and March 11, 2009, at an earlier hearing.

Last Wednesday, he appeared at Llandudno Magistrates Court to be sentenced.

In mitigation, defending solicitor Richard Williams reminded the court the images were all level one, which is the lowest of five levels under the Protection of Children Act 1978. May was said to receive Income Support and to be the carer for his disabled mother.

District Judge Andrew Shaw gave May a three-year supervision order and ordered him to pay £85 costs. He also imposed a five-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order under the Sexual Offences Act.

Under it, May is prohibited from taking, making, possessing, distributing or downloading pornographic or indecent images.

He is also prohibited from preventing police officers from accessing his digital media and computer equipment or any he uses and allowing the police to examine them.

May is banned from installing software which could wipe material from computer equipment. The judge ordered the forfeiture and destruction of May’s Acer laptop, integral memory stick and three pen drives.