February 2015 Pensioner “obsessed” by child abuse images is jailed for third time A pensioner “obsessed” by indecent images of children has been jailed for the third time for having obscene images on his computer. A court heard Colin Hardy was arrested after police carried out a routine visit at his home and discovered suspicious deleted images on his computer. Alan Murphy, prosecuting, said officers found 26 illegal images and nearly 10,000 searches of child abuse sites. Hardy (70) pleaded guilty in January to seven counts of possessing indecent images of under age children, some as young as five, between January 2013 and March 25, 2014. Yesterday Mr Murphy said: “The defendant was convicted in 2010 and 2012 of similar offences.” In 2010 he was jailed but in 2012 he was given a community sentence. However he breached the terms of that sentence and was jailed again. Mr Murphy explained that Hardy, of Beaumont Lodge Road, Beaumont Leys, Leicester, was subject to a sexual offences prevention order which enabled officers to carry out periodical inspections of his computer. He said it was one such visit in March last year that officers found suspicious deleted images on his computer. Mr Murphy said: “It is clear that specialist software had been used to delete files.” But he said officers had managed to recover a total of 26 deleted images which had been accessed in January 2013. He said two of the worst category images involved children aged between five and 13. He said they also found 9,990 searches of child abuse image sites out of a total of 14,000 searches on his computer. Sian Cutting, mitigating, said: “There is evidence that my client is becoming aware of what his offending means. His wife has left home and he does not know if and when she will return. “He accepts that a jail sentence is inevitable.” Judge Michael Fowler sentencing Hardy said: “Your obsession means that you will go to prison for 18 months.” He placed Hardy on the sex offenders register and extended the sexual offences prevention order indefinitely. He ordered that the computer and the images were seized and destroyed. January 2010 Jail term for child abuse images dad from Leicester A father who downloaded child porn was caught when he asked his son’s girlfriend to fix his computer, a court heard. She alerted police, who discovered more than 1,700 indecent images of youngsters. Colin Edward William Hardy (64), of Glaisdale Close, Beaumont Leys, Leicester, was jailed for eight months after admitting 13 counts of making indecent images of children, between May and November 2008. The charges related to 1,704 images at level one – the least serious category – 12 at level two, 18 at level three and 30 at level four – all stored on his home computer. The offences also related to images printed from his computer, involving 79 at level one, one at level four and one in the most serious category, level five. Malcolm Wilson, prosecuting, told Leicester Crown Court Hardy thought he had a virus on his computer and asked his son’s girlfriend to fix the problem. He also said he wanted to save some “mucky pictures.” When she saw the photographs of children being abused, she was horrified. Hardy’s son, who was said to be disgusted, no longer speaks to his father. In interview, the defendant admitted downloading the images but did not accept he had a problem with an addiction to girls. He did not appreciate the seriousness of viewing the images. Steven Newcombe, in mitigation, said: “He’s displayed an incredible level of naivety and there was no attempt to disguise the fact he’d viewed the images. “He had little or no idea as to what lay behind those images. “The best example of his naivety is the way he invited his son’s girlfriend to deal with the images on the computer. “His honesty included admitting to the author of the pre-sentence report that he’d previously visited Thailand as a sex tourist.” There was no suggestion Hardy – who has married for the third time – was ever personally involved with any children while overseas. Mr Newcombe said: “His view was he didn’t see what he was doing was wrong but this appearance in court has changed that view and been a hard lesson.” Judge Simon Hammond said: “The pre-sentence report states he didn’t realise he was committing an offence and gave little thought to the harm caused by his offending. “He had little appreciation it was exploitation. “For those images to be produced, children elsewhere in the world, maybe in this country, have been grossly abused for people’s sexual gratification. “Youngsters have been stripped of their innocence and had their lives ruined. It beggars belief this defendant didn’t understand that.”