Record number of internet perverts hoarding child abuse images dodge jail sentences

Record number of internet perverts hoarding child abuse images dodge jail sentences Ministry of Justice figures show fewer than one in five of those convicted last year ended up behind bars, with others let off with community sentences or fines A record number of paedophiles convicted of hoarding child abuse images escaped a prison sentence last year because they were handed a suspended jail sentence. Every week last year a total of 40 internet perverts were sentenced for making, distributing or possessing indecent photographs of children but dodged prison with a suspended jail term. It means they were all allowed to keep their liberty and as long as they don’t commit any other crimes they get to stay out of prison. They made up 2,108 of the record tally of 3,962 people who were sentenced for having child abuse images last year. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) figures show fewer than one in five of those convicted last year ended up behind bars, with others let off with community sentences or even fines. Among those who have been spared jail was former BBC newsreader Huw Edwards, who was given a six-month sentence suspended for two years at Westminster Magistrates in September 2024. Edwards, then 63, admitted three charges of making indecent images after being sent 41 illegal pictures and videos over WhatsApp, seven of them in the most serious category. Child sexual abuse campaigners criticised him recently after he launched a Substack blog offering “commentary and analysis” on issues such as current affairs and mental health, saying he “lacked remorse”. Former Premier League referee David Coote, 43, also avoided prison in January 2026, receiving nine months suspended for two years and 150 hours of unpaid work. Nottingham Crown Court heard Coote had downloaded a category A video showing a 15- year-old boy in school uniform, the most serious classification of child abuse material. The 2,108 given a suspended sentence last year is more than double the 919 offenders given this type of punishment in 2020, and the highest number recorded since the MoJ began publishing comparable figures in 2017. Just 696 offenders were sent immediately to prison in 2025, a custody rate of 17.6%, down from 23.4% in 2017. Another 1,096 offenders were dealt with by community sentence last year, made up of 989 community orders, 101 referral orders for young offenders and six youth rehabilitation orders. Community punishments accounted for 27.7 per cent of all sentences in 2025, the smallest share in the nine-year run, as courts increasingly opted for suspended jail terms instead. A further 21 offenders received conditional discharges, 12 were fined and eight were given an absolute discharge, meaning no punishment was imposed beyond the conviction itself. The data also shows a sharp rise in young offenders guilty of having sick child abuse images, with 385 people aged under 21 sentenced for the offences in 2025 against 171 in 2017. Among them were 108 children aged between 10 and 17, more than double the 47 dealt with in 2017, of whom 96 per cent received community sentences. Kevin Moore, a retired Detective Chief Superintendent and former Head of Sussex Police CID, said: “All such offences are abhorrent and many people seeing these statistics will be appalled. “However, we do need to take into account all of the circumstances of each individual offence. The types of images may have a bearing on this as well as the age of the offender.” “Ordinarily, it would be highly unlikely that young persons under the age of 17 years would receive a custodial sentence when other forms of punishment involving some kind of remedial therapy or treatment would be more appropriate. “All such offenders should have their names included on the Sex Offenders Register which then ensures that they are made subject of monitoring as regards their future behaviour.” A spokeman for Project 90-10, which campaigns, raises awareness, and works to prevent child sexual abuse, said: “Every single image reflects a real abused child. Life is not long enough to repay that harm. When four out of five people caught with child abuse images avoid prison, it tells victims their suffering is negotiable. The punishment must be harsher because this crime is not passive. It is active participation in CSA. “Every image is a crime scene. Every child in those images was abused in real life. When only one in five offenders receive a custodial sentence, we are not protecting children. We are protecting offenders. “Suspended sentences minimise the harm and undermine public trust. They send a message that viewing child sexual abuse is somehow less serious than committing it. It is not. It is participation in the abuse and it fuels the demand that keeps these children in danger. “We keep seeing the same pattern across very different cases. Whether it is a high-profile figure like Huw Edwards or a repeat offender in the courts, the problem is the same. Our systems minimise sexual harm and underestimate the danger these behaviours represent. Children are forgotten while adults are excused. That must change.” A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Public protection is our priority, and while sentences are decided by independent judges, community sentences can include tough requirements like curfews, tagging and exclusion zones – offenders who breach them can be jailed. “This government is restoring order to a justice system left on the brink of collapse - building 14,000 new places, launching the biggest ever expansion of tagging, and giving victims a say in the strict licence conditions.”