DAMIAN GALLAGHER OF MIDDLESBROUGH SENTENCED FOR CHILD ABUSE IMAGES IN TEESSIDE
In March 2019, Damian Gallagher, a 50-year-old man from Middlesbrough, was found to have descended into a 'dark and depraved world' of child abuse images and extreme pornography.He was caught with over 350 indecent pictures of children, some depicting rape, and nearly 2,000 images of extreme pornography.
Gallagher, described as a lonely man, had developed his collection after 'gorging on' adult porn.
The once-successful businessman faced possible imprisonment of up to three years, but a judge at Teesside Crown Court showed leniency, citing concerns that a prison sentence could threaten his home and impact his elderly parents.
Officers from Cleveland Police executed a raid on Gallagher’s home on April 10 of the previous year and seized several devices.
Prosecutor Rachel Masters reported: 'Images were recovered across the devices.' A total of 348 indecent images of children were found, including 17 in the most serious category, depicting children as young as seven.
Additionally, 1,887 images of extreme pornography were discovered, though only seven were accessible on the devices.
The explicit content was accessed and downloaded between 2011 and 2018.
Gallagher, who resides on Falmouth Street in central Middlesbrough, pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children and one count of possessing extreme pornography.
His prior convictions were limited to traffic-related offences.
Judge Deborah Sherwin commented on Gallagher’s case: 'Those images were downloaded over a number of years, a seven-year period.
Most of the images had been deleted from the devices and weren’t accessible by you at the time.' She further explained that if Gallagher faced an immediate prison sentence, he could lose his accommodation and his ability to support his elderly parents.
The judge concluded that the public would be better protected by suspending Gallagher’s sentence, allowing a Probation Service intervention to prevent future offenses.
Consequently, Gallagher was sentenced to 10 months in jail, suspended for two years, subject to a treatment programme and 25 days of rehabilitation activities.
He was also issued a sexual harm prevention order and placed on the sex offenders’ register for ten years.
