DANIEL PRICE FROM NEWTON AYCLIFFE SENTENCED FOR CHILD ABUSE AND REPEATED OFFENSES IN DURHAM

In a disturbing series of events that unfolded in Newton Aycliffe and Durham, Daniel Price, aged 26, was found to have committed multiple serious offenses related to child exploitation and possession of indecent images. The sequence of incidents highlights a troubling pattern of criminal behavior, culminating in a significant prison sentence and ongoing restrictions.

In November 2018, Price was involved in a particularly alarming incident where he actively reoffended by sending a video depicting a man engaging in sexual acts with a young girl to an undercover police officer. This act of communication was part of a covert operation conducted by law enforcement, during which an officer used a disguised email account to engage with Price. The offender responded by sending an explicit image of a girl under ten years old being raped, a revelation that shocked the authorities.

At the time of this incident, Price was already under scrutiny for possessing an extensive collection of over 1,500 images of child abuse. He was awaiting sentencing at Durham Crown Court for these prior offenses. The court, unaware of the ongoing sting operation, sentenced him on May 18 to 12 months in prison, suspended for two years. This relatively lenient sentence reflected the court’s consideration of his guilty pleas and the early cooperation he showed.

However, the situation escalated when, during the court hearing, it was revealed that Price had begun deleting his internet browsing history—an act explicitly prohibited by a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) issued against him. This breach of the order was taken very seriously by the authorities. On July 17, police arrested him following the discovery of a video sent to the undercover officer, and during the subsequent search of his mobile phone, they uncovered an additional 30 indecent images of children being sexually abused. These images depicted girls aged between five and eight years old, further illustrating the severity of his offending.

The police investigation revealed that Price had been using a cloud storage system to hide and access these illicit images, thereby breaching the terms of his SHPO once again. Prosecutor Jon Harley described the images as “sickening,” emphasizing that one of the children depicted appeared to be in visible distress. The images and videos found on his devices confirmed a persistent pattern of offending, with police noting that Price had been actively deleting his search history over several weeks to conceal his activities.

During a previous court hearing, Price had pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including distributing indecent images, possessing indecent images, and breaching a sexual harm prevention order. His defense, led by Jane Foley, argued that despite his age, he was “naïve and immature,” and requested that credit be given for his early guilty pleas. Nevertheless, the judge, Christopher Prince, sentenced him to a total of three years and eight months in prison. The judge emphasized that Price should use his time behind bars to reflect on the gravity of his actions and warned that upon release, he would be subject to an indefinite SHPO.

Judge Prince made it clear that the sentence could no longer be suspended, and only immediate imprisonment was appropriate given the circumstances. He stated, “You were given the opportunity to address your offending. You completely and utterly failed to do so.” The judge also indicated that Price would serve approximately half of his sentence in custody and the remainder on license in the community, with the expectation that he would adhere strictly to the conditions of his release.

Earlier in August 2018, Price had already faced legal consequences for breaching an interim court order just days before his sentencing for downloading indecent images of children. When police visited his residence on Biscop Crescent in Newton Aycliffe, he admitted to having come across the images long ago, claiming, “I’m sorry, it was a long time ago. The indecent images, I just came across them.”

He had previously pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images and one count of possessing prohibited images of children. His case was transferred to Durham Crown Court for sentencing, where he was also placed under an interim sex offender registration and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order. The court heard that Price’s unhealthy interest in such material developed after he became reclusive following an unprovoked attack in 2012. His behavior escalated from viewing adult pornography to accessing images and videos involving children, which he admitted to finding sexually arousing.

Despite his shame and embarrassment, Price had sought counseling and claimed to have ceased viewing such images. The court acknowledged his cooperation and early admissions, which led to a suspended sentence of 12 months, with two years of supervision and mandatory participation in a rehabilitation program. The court also imposed restrictions under the SHPO and ordered registration as a sex offender for ten years, warning that any breach would result in immediate imprisonment.

However, shortly before his sentencing, Price was caught again, this time for breaching the interim SHPO and distributing an indecent image of a child on May 12. He admitted to these breaches during police interviews, and the case was adjourned to allow further examination of his electronic devices. Judge Jonathan Carroll indicated that the starting point for such offenses was around three years in prison but agreed to postpone sentencing until September 28 to complete the necessary investigations, with Price remaining in custody until then.