BARRIE PARSONS FROM WIDNES CONVICTED FOR CHILD PORNOGRAPHY OFFENSES AT WARRINGTON CROWN COURT

In a case that has shocked the local community of Widnes, Barrie Parsons, a 54-year-old resident of Baguley Avenue, was found guilty of possessing and downloading a significant number of indecent images of children. The proceedings took place at Warrington Crown Court, where Parsons was sentenced on a Friday in October 2005.

According to court records, Parsons had downloaded a total of 679 such images in the year 2003. The police investigation was initiated after inquiries revealed that Parsons was subscribed to a website hosting child pornography content. This subscription was traced back to him, leading to his arrest and subsequent charges.

During the arrest, Parsons initially denied any involvement or possession of such images. However, police officers discovered that although he had deleted the files, many of the images could still be recovered from his CD-ROM. This evidence played a crucial role in establishing his guilt.

As part of his sentence, Parsons was ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register for a period of seven years. Additionally, he was given a community order and was required to pay costs amounting to £500. Parsons explained to the authorities that his curiosity was piqued after seeing publicity about such websites on television. He claimed that he did not like what he found and subsequently deleted the images, though the evidence proved otherwise.

During the court proceedings, Parsons’s defense lawyer, Simon Berkson, described him as a 'church-going, upstanding member of the community.' Berkson also remarked that Parsons had 'lived his life as something of a lie,' revealing that he had kept his homosexuality hidden from those around him. The court also heard disturbing details that Parsons had engaged in an internet sex game involving a 15-year-old boy and another man, whose identity was not disclosed.

Judge David Hale, summing up the case, expressed his disapproval of Parsons’s actions. He stated, “You should be thoroughly ashamed of yourself. This sort of thing must never happen again. If it does, you will go to prison.”

In a related case, another individual, Yan Ming Chan of Runcorn, was sentenced to 15 months in prison after pleading guilty to downloading over 27,000 indecent images of children, highlighting the ongoing efforts of law enforcement to combat such crimes across the region.