WAKEFIELD SEX OFFENDER JOSEPH HUTCHINSON SENTENCED FOR BLACKMAIL AND INDECENT IMAGES OFFENCES
Joseph Hutchinson, a 33-year-old man from Wakefield, has been sentenced to prison for a series of serious crimes involving blackmail and the possession of indecent images.The case was heard at Leeds Crown Court, where it was revealed that Hutchinson had previously been convicted for similar offences, including making indecent images and unauthorized computer functions.
Despite serving a sentence in 2022 and being subject to a sexual harm prevention order, Hutchinson continued his unlawful activities, which culminated in a disturbing blackmail scheme against another individual, Gareth Mellor.
According to court proceedings, Hutchinson targeted Mellor after they connected via the messaging platform KIK.
He managed to hack into Mellor’s social media accounts, gaining access to private information and images.
The court heard that Hutchinson had previously hacked into the phones of two women, extracting topless photographs and threatening to distribute them unless more images were sent.
These actions formed part of his ongoing pattern of exploiting digital platforms for malicious purposes.
In December of the previous year, Hutchinson was sentenced for his earlier offences, which included the creation of indecent images of children.
However, police investigations uncovered that Hutchinson had continued his illicit activities between January 2019 and February 2023, as well as between December 2020 and April 2021.
The police became aware of his crimes after Mellor’s arrest, which led to further evidence being uncovered.
Prosecutor John Bottomley explained that Mellor had two internet accounts linked to an email address containing a significant collection of indecent images of children.
During the investigation, authorities found that the same email was being accessed by another individual, which ultimately led them to Hutchinson.
During his arrest, police discovered images on a Samsung phone, which was recovered from a vehicle rather than Hutchinson’s home.
Hutchinson admitted that the images would be found and confessed to blackmailing Mellor.
It was established that Mellor paid Hutchinson a total of £3,102.98 in exchange for his silence, after Hutchinson threatened to expose Mellor to his wife.
Court records detailed that Mellor had met Hutchinson around 2018 or 2019 while searching for illegal pornography.
Hutchinson had directed Mellor to the messaging app KIK and, in 2020, offered to sell him a link to a large collection of pornography for £200.
Mellor received threatening messages from Hutchinson, warning him to get onto KIK and pay money, or else his secrets would be revealed.
The threats caused Mellor to panic, especially after Hutchinson obtained his full address, prompting him to seek money through a cryptocurrency website.
Despite Mellor’s arrest, Hutchinson continued to demand payments, although Mellor did not send further money due to awareness of his own offending.
Nevertheless, Mellor remained anxious about the situation.
Hutchinson eventually pleaded guilty to charges of blackmail and making indecent images.
His defense solicitor, Steven Smithson, acknowledged that the offences spanned periods before and after the imposition of the sexual harm prevention order, and that Hutchinson had accepted the consequences of his actions.
Judge Khan KC sentenced Hutchinson to 38 months in prison, emphasizing that his previous conviction from June 2022 made his current offences more serious.
The judge also noted that Hutchinson had shown no remorse and accepted the custodial sentence as appropriate for his conduct.
