Cleethorpes man jailed for possessing indecent images of children
Paul Davies Abingdon sentenced to 18 months in prison at Grimsby Crown Court
A 64-year-old man from Cleethorpes received an 18-month prison sentence for possessing over 750 illegal images, many of which contained children.
Paul Davies Abingdon, who resides on Sea View Street, was found guilty of three counts of making indecent images of children after a three-day trial at Grimsby Crown Court.
He was sentenced to 18 months and given a ten-year sexual harm prevention order.
Additionally, he will remain on the sex offenders register indefinitely.
The police became aware of the crimes after their Online Investigation Team received intelligence about internet activity from Abingdon’s home suggesting uploads of suspected indecent media of children.
In June 2022, Abingdon was arrested, and police seized three laptops, two mobile phones, and a number of SD cards from his property.
Following the examination of these devices, officers discovered over 750 illegal images, many of them involving children.
Detective Constable Bethany Barker from the Police Online Investigation Team explained the background of the investigation.
"Following an online investigation, we identified that Abingdon had used an email account in connection with suspected indecent material. Through our enquiries, we were able to trace the activity to an address linked to him."
"During interview, he admitted accessing pornographic material online and saving it to his phone from media accounts. However, he denied having any indecent images of children on his devices."
"Following a thorough forensic examination of his devices, officers located numerous images of a sexual nature, including indecent images of children. While there was no evidence to confirm that he had shared or uploaded indecent images online, the material was present on his devices."
Abingdon's actions exhibited a disregard for the harm and abuse associated with such material.
"He now has a prison sentence ahead of him to think about the impact of his actions and I hope that today’s sentencing serves as a warning to anyone else considering committing these types of offences. We will find you, we will take action and we will bring you to justice," Barker concluded.