March 2017 Pervert John Semple had vile child abuse images on laptop kept at mother’s home A pervert from Derbyshire was caught with indecent images of children on a laptop he kept at his mother’s home. Married John Semple also made internet searches for images of children engaging in sex acts as young as 11, Derby Crown Court heard. And when the police first knocked at the 58-year-old’s door and told them why they had come to see him he replied “It is me and nothing to do with anyone else.” Handing him a 10-month jail term, suspended for two years, Judge Jonathan Bennett said: “This is an extremely serious offence. “You might think that you have been simply sitting in your living room with a clear predilection for looking at these types of movies and images not causing any harm to anyone. “But as you are well aware there are real victims here, children who have been abused. “And you are sitting there, watching and looking, indulging yourself in your fantasies by spending a significant amount of time almost obsessing in this kind of thing.” Andrew Vout, prosecuting, said police became aware that Semple was making internet searches for indecent images of children last summer. He said they went to his address, in Russell Street, Long Eaton, on July 7, armed with a search warrant. Mr Vout said: “When they told him why they were executing the warrant he replied ‘It is me and nothing to do with anyone else’. “He told them they would find a Compaq laptop at his address and a Toshiba one at his mother’s address.” Mr Vout said 12 category A movies, the most serious kind, were discovered on the Toshiba laptop, along with two category B movies and 34 category C images or moving pictures. He said: “Police analysis also revealed he had made internet searches for PTHC (pre-teen hardcore) for children aged 12 and 11. “He admitted that the Toshiba laptop that was seized from his mother’s address was his.” Semple was arrested and pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children between May 2014 and July 2016. Judge Bennett ordered that Semple carry out 120 hours’ unpaid work and made him the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for 10 years. He said: “Like so many people who come before the court for this kind of behaviour you have no previous convictions, although your record is aggravated by the fact that you have a caution from 2010 for similar offending. “It is a criminal offence to breach any orders you have been given and if that happens in two or three years time you are still committing an offence.”