COLIN EATON FROM TIVERTON CAUGHT WITH INDECENT CHILD IMAGES AND STEALING PORN MAGAZINE

In a case that has shocked the community of Tiverton, Colin Eaton, aged 53, has been found guilty of possessing indecent images of children and engaging in theft. The incident unfolded at a local store on Anstey Crescent, where Eaton was caught attempting to steal a copy of the adult magazine titled “Barely 18” on February 18. Witnesses reported seeing him stuffing the magazine down his trousers before leaving the premises.

Following his arrest, Eaton pleaded guilty to the theft charge. The court sentenced him to a six-month conditional discharge and imposed a £15 victim surcharge. This sentence, however, placed him in breach of a previously suspended jail term of eight months, which was handed down at Exeter Crown Court last year. That earlier sentence was the result of Eaton’s admission to 18 separate offences involving the making and possession of indecent images of children.

As part of his ongoing legal consequences, Eaton was ordered to participate in a sex offenders’ rehabilitation program and was placed under a two-year supervision order. Authorities discovered more than 900 images on his devices, which were classified at the lowest level of severity, involving posing and nudity without sexual activity. Despite the gravity of his offenses, magistrates decided not to activate his suspended sentence, citing his apparent progress and the dissimilar nature of the current offense compared to his previous convictions.

Earlier in November 2012, Eaton’s criminal activities came to light in a different manner. Tiverton binmen, performing their routine collection duties, discovered photographs of naked children in a recycling bin. The binmen, shocked by their find, alerted the police and began monitoring the area for further evidence. Their efforts paid off when they uncovered additional batches of images, some of which were mixed with discarded documents bearing Eaton’s name and address.

Subsequent police investigations led to a raid on Eaton’s residence in Rena Hobson Court, Tiverton. During the search, officers seized his computer and found hundreds of images depicting naked boys and girls. Eaton, who was unemployed at the time, admitted to 18 offences related to the making and possession of indecent images of children. He was sentenced to eight months in prison, suspended for two years, and was ordered to undergo a sex offenders’ program as part of a two-year supervision order.

Judge Francis Gilbert, QC, also mandated Eaton’s inclusion on the sex offenders’ register and issued a sexual offences prevention order, which prohibits him from contacting anyone under the age of 16 online. The court also imposed costs of £300. In his remarks, the judge emphasized the seriousness of Eaton’s actions, noting that the images were printed and discarded in public places, which could have been accessed by children or other passersby. The judge acknowledged Eaton’s previous benefit fraud conviction and his mental health struggles following a divorce in 2001, but stressed that his behavior was reckless and unacceptable.

Prosecutor Miss Janice Eagles highlighted that police seized Eaton’s computer after the images were initially found, but he subsequently purchased a new device and continued downloading more images, which were uncovered during a second raid. The total number of images exceeded 900, all at the lowest level of severity, involving posing and nudity but no sexual activity.

Defense lawyer Mr. Nigel Wraith argued that Eaton’s only prior conviction was for benefit fraud and that he had been suffering from mental health issues. Wraith stated, “He has struggled to cope but acknowledges he has a problem, so far as these images are concerned, and that he is willing to be helped.” He also emphasized that Eaton had shown remorse by pleading guilty and that the images were at the lower end of the scale of severity.