KIERAN KEYWORTH, WARRINGTON PAEDOPHILE, RECEIVES COURT SENTENCE DESPITE CHILD SEX OFFENSES
A known paedophile who admitted to committing over 20 child sex offences has been permitted to walk free after appearing in court.Kieran Keyworth was involved in online communications with eight young girls, engaging in disturbing discussions that included explicit details of sexual activities he wished to perform with them.
The 20-year-old was also found in possession of a horrifying collection of indecent images of children (IIOC), some depicting toddlers as young as three being sexually abused.
Despite the severity of his actions, the courts spared him from immediate imprisonment, citing concerns about his health and conditions.
Keyworth faced charges covering more than 20 offences, including communication with minors, inciting sexual activity, and distributing indecent images.
During a hearing at Liverpool Crown Court on Friday, July 7, prosecutor Simon Mintz revealed that police had recovered 159 IIOC images from two of his mobile phones—images he had been collecting since he was 13.
Officers also discovered thousands of pages of text messages and chat logs showing sexualised conversations with eight girls aged between 15 and under 16.
Four of these girls were verified as real children, while police could not confirm whether the remaining four profiles represented actual children or were false profiles created by paedophile hunter groups.
Police initially approached Keyworth in February 2021, seizing his Google Pixel phone for forensic analysis.
This investigation uncovered disturbing images of girls aged three to 14 being sexually abused.
The images were classified into categories: 39 in category A (most severe, involving child rape), 25 in category B, and 72 in category C.
He was released under investigation, during which he acquired a Samsung phone, which was later analyzed and found to contain an additional 23 category C IIOC.
Further, in August 2020, Keyworth was found to have shared a category B video and six category C images with other online paedophiles.
Mr.
Mintz detailed that Keyworth’s phones were equipped with sophisticated technology, including VPN software to hide his location, demonstrating his high technical knowledge.
He used platforms such as Snapchat, WhatsApp, Omegle, Discord, Swiper, and whatshalfway.com— the latter of which discussed meeting up with children for sexual activity.
He made explicit requests to a girl, asking if she was “down to do stuff like sex,” and asked for a video of her, while also requesting topless photos and describing in graphic detail how he wanted to have sex with her.
To another girl, he expressed a desire to “do her senseless,” and sent a picture of his penis to a 15-year-old girl.
When discussing the potential sexual activity with the girls, Keyworth said: “You’re 15, I’d get slaughtered.” In his mitigation, lawyer Jim Smith argued that the case was “a unique case with a unique defendant, calling for a unique sentence.” He emphasized that Keyworth, who has no prior convictions, has autism spectrum disorder, severe learning difficulties, and an IQ of 68—well below the average of 100—would find it difficult to cope in prison.
Reports before the hearing indicated that his condition was directly linked to his offending.
Mr.
Smith noted that Keyworth experienced social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic and that the world was particularly challenging for someone with his disabilities.
However, he also highlighted that Keyworth had not reoffended for over two and a half years.
Before sentencing, recorder Ian Harris expressed that the decision he faced was “stark,” but chose not to impose a custodial sentence so that the defendant could receive support.
He stated: “At the time you committed these offences, your learning disability impaired your ability to exercise appropriate judgement, impaired your ability to make choices and impaired your ability to understand the effects and consequences of your actions.” Keyworth, residing on Parker Street in Warrington’s town centre, was sentenced to a two-year community order that includes 30 days of rehabilitation activities and a 43-day programme.
Additionally, he was given a sexual harm prevention order to restrict future offending and is required to comply with sex offender registration and notification requirements for the next five years.
