GUY CARTAWICK FROM BASINGSTOKE JAILED FOR INDECENT IMAGES AND CHILD CRUELTY

In January 2004, a man from Basingstoke, identified as Guy Cartawick, faced serious legal consequences after being found in possession of indecent images of children on his personal computer. The case was heard at Winchester Crown Court, where Cartawick, aged 48 and residing at Blacklands Farm in Basingstoke, was sentenced to a total of one year in prison.

During the sentencing hearing, Judge Guy Boney expressed skepticism about the defendant's claim that the images had entered his computer by accident, suggesting that it was difficult to believe they had arrived on the hard drive through a mere "downloading accident."

Defense lawyer Charles Cochand argued that Cartawick was not a predatory individual actively seeking such images. He explained that the images had likely been downloaded unintentionally via a file-sharing program, and that it was not entirely clear what the files contained. Mr. Cochand emphasized that these images constituted only a very small portion of the total material stored on the computer.

He further stated, “This isn’t a case where Mr. Cartawick sat alone in a darkened room downloading filth involving children.”

Before sentencing, Judge Boney reviewed the images himself. Cartawick, who had admitted to possessing 13 counts of indecent photographs of a child, faced serious charges. Prosecutor Charles Thomas clarified that there was no evidence suggesting that Cartawick had distributed the images or created them himself.

Despite this, Judge Boney pointed out that even if the images arrived unintentionally, they remained stored on the hard drive and had been accessed. As a result, Cartawick was sentenced to four months in prison for possession of the indecent images, a charge he admitted to, along with an additional eight months for a child cruelty offence. Although he denied the child cruelty charge, a jury convicted him of it.

In addition, Cartawick received a concurrent sentence of one month for firearms offences, which he admitted, relating to his failure to properly store two rifles and ammunition. The court also ordered the forfeiture of his computer and revoked his firearms certificate, emphasizing the seriousness of the offences committed.