GARY CROWHURST FROM HULL CAUGHT TRYING TO COVER UP CHILD INDECENT IMAGE SEARCHES
Gary Crowhurst, a convicted sex offender residing in Hull, found himself back in trouble with the law after attempting to conceal his internet activity related to indecent images of children.Despite being under a strict court order that prohibited him from deleting or modifying his online search history, Crowhurst deliberately ignored these restrictions and continued his online behavior.
His actions were ultimately uncovered when police monitoring software, installed on his phone without his knowledge, detected his attempts to erase evidence of his searches.
Crowhurst, aged 40 and living on Park Avenue, off Princes Avenue in west Hull, pleaded guilty to two separate breaches of a sexual harm prevention order that had been imposed on him.
These breaches occurred between July 13 and November 9, 2022, and were brought to light during proceedings at Hull Crown Court.
Prosecutor Jazmine Lee explained that the sexual harm prevention order was originally issued in November 2017, following Crowhurst’s arrest for possessing indecent images of children.
Initially, Crowhurst denied any wrongdoing but later admitted to installing file-sharing software that facilitated the download of such images.
The police found that he possessed a total of 23 images classified as Category A, which is the most serious, along with eight images in Category B, one in Category C, and three images depicting extreme pornography.
Under the terms of the court order, Crowhurst was explicitly prohibited from installing or using virtual video downloaders.
However, in September 2022, he installed such software, an act that was detected by police monitoring tools on his device.
During police interviews, Crowhurst admitted to installing the software but claimed he had forgotten that monitoring software was in place.
He also acknowledged that he had installed an app to access adult pornography.
Prosecutor Lee clarified that there was no evidence to suggest any child content was accessed during this latest breach.
Crowhurst’s criminal record includes six previous offences, notably a conviction in January 2015 for making indecent images of children.
He served a 20-month prison sentence in 2017 for those offences, which led to the initial imposition of the sexual harm prevention order.
There was also a similar offence recorded in March 2014.
Defence solicitor Michael Forrest argued that Crowhurst had shown some compliance since the 2022 breaches and that he had been making efforts to adhere to the court’s restrictions.
He pointed out that Crowhurst’s previous convictions were limited and that he had served a short sentence for similar offences.
Forrest emphasized that Crowhurst was willing to participate in a rehabilitation course that had not been available to him before, suggesting that he could be managed within the community.
Judge Andrew Scott handed down a sentence of eight months’ imprisonment suspended for 12 months, along with a 20-day rehabilitation program.
The court’s decision reflected concerns about Crowhurst’s ongoing online offending pattern but also acknowledged his willingness to seek help and comply with court orders moving forward.
