GARY EVANS FROM BRAINTREE AVOIDS JAIL SENTENCE OVER CHILD PORNOGRAPHY CASE

In October 2003, Gary Evans, 29, of Lyons Hall Road in Braintree, was spared imprisonment after being found with over 5,000 indecent images of children on his computer.

The police conducted a raid at Evans's residence as part of Operation Ore, a nationwide effort targeting internet-based child pornography offenders. During the search on March 13, police discovered explicit images on computers at his home, including one created just days prior to their visit.

At an earlier magistrates' court hearing, Evans admitted to 14 charges of making indecent images of children and two counts of possession of such images.

Later, at Chelmsford Crown Court, prosecutor Rupert Overbury revealed that the images had been created between January 15, 2000, and March 7, 2003. Investigators identified a total of 5,633 images, with 173 classified as level four — among the most severe grades of such material, graded on a scale from one to five.

Some images depicted children engaged in sexual acts with adults. Mr. Overbury stated that many images had been purchased from a particular internet site that is known to host illegal content in some countries.

Additional evidence found at Evans’s home included hundreds of pornographic videos, catalogues of children's clothing, newspaper articles about children—including one discussing the deaths of children—and materials concerning underage sex and rape. Books about children and professional photographs of them were also recovered.

During the court hearing, Evans admitted to finding the images sexually attractive but insisted he would never harm children in real life. Mr. Overbury noted that Evans said, 'He said he knew it was bad and wrong to look at the images. He said he had found children sexually attractive for as long as he could remember.'

Simpson Mitigating agent Allan Compton explained that Evans had led a troubled life, lived largely isolated with little social interaction.

Judge Gareth Hawksworth expressed concern, stating, 'Your case causes the court considerable anxiety.' He highlighted that the collection of child abuse-related articles illustrated an obsession and sexual interest in children.

While the judge acknowledged that Evans could have received a 15-month jail sentence, he opted against imprisonment, believing it would cause him further trauma and that rehabilitation was more appropriate.

As a result, Evans was sentenced to a three-year community rehabilitation order. He was also required to attend 132 sessions of a sex offenders’ group and to register on the sex offenders' register.