Sheffield pervert caught with indecent images of children is spared jail

Sheffield Crown Court heard on September 10 how Bradley Perkins, aged 25, of Queens Road, Sheffield, was caught with the images after police received information linking him to his former internet protocol address and they then tracked him down to his new address.

Adam Keenaghan, prosecuting, said: “On July 15, 2017, South Yorkshire Police received information from an IP address linked to the defendant that category A indecent images were being uploaded to his address.”

Mr Keenaghan added police executed a search at the property in 2018 but after they found it empty they later traced Perkins to his new address where they seized a computer tower, a laptop and a mobile phone.

Police discovered two indecent category A images of a child and 156 prohibited images of a child, according to Mr Keenaghan.

Perkins pleaded guilty to making indecent photos of a child from 2018 and to being in possession of 156 prohibited images of a child from 2019.

Mark Bates, defending, said the defendant has complex learning difficulties that have not been fully addressed.

He added: “He has maintained that he is entirely remorseful and he said he is disgusted at his own actions.”

Mr Bates said rehabilitation is what this defendant is crying out for and he urged the court to give him that opportunity.

Judge David Dixon told Perkins: “You were in a normal relationship but things went wrong, as they do, but thereafter you had difficulties dealing with finding ways of dealing with the lack of intimate contact.

“But because of your psychological make-up and because you find it easier dealing with younger people it seems as though you started looking at internet pornography and in particular illicit and illegal material.”

However, Judge Dixon acknowledged that Perkins has not re-offended since and he has been seeking help and there is scope for rehabilitation in his case.

He sentenced Perkins to 14 months of custody suspended for two years with a rehabilitation requirement and a sex-offender treatment programme.

Perkins has also been made subject to the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years and he has been placed on a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for eight years.