Thomas Becton avoided jail despite having over 1,000 indecent images of children on his devices found during a search.
The case was heard at Swansea Crown Court on Wednesday. Becton had 1,044 images in total. Police found them on February 2, 2024. Eleven were category A moving images, five were category B moving images, 1,011 were still category C images, and 17 were moving category C images.
The CPS describes making indecent images as having a wide definition. It includes opening attachments with such images and visiting related websites where pop-up ads might show those pictures.
Police took a phone, game consoles, flash drives, and his laptop for review. After this discovery, police arrested Becton.
The large number of images and video footage worsened the situation. Becton also searched for this kind of content. He already admitted guilt and pled guilty to three charges for making indecent images.
Becton’s lawyer said he knows the crimes are serious and understands how grave this is. She stated that possessing this type of material is awful, with no excuse, and he does not try to make it lighter.
His lawyer said he has no prior convictions and is a delivery driver with IT skills. His risk to reoffend is low, but he is a medium risk to children. Probation can lower and manage this risk. An assessment called his rehab “reasonable.”
Judge Catherine Richards spoke to Becton directly, telling him the images hurt real kids. His actions added to their pain and supported harms to those kids.
She explained the reasons for her sentence, stating that prison is the first thought but wouldn’t fix his behavior or protect other children. Preventing more crimes is her focus; she wants to protect kids.
She gave Becton a suspended sentence of 12 months, suspended for two years. He must complete 26 probation meetings, 25 days of rehab, and 150 hours of unpaid work. He has to register as a sex offender for 10 years.