August 2011 Portsmouth paedophile with 13,000 images is reported by wife A PAEDOPHILE was reported to police by his wife after she found a child porn image on his computer. And the true extent of dad Neil Roberts’ vile secret was exposed once officers began investigating. His computers were seized and detectives discovered he had been hiding more than 13,000 images of child abuse. More than 10,000 images were found on one laptop. Experts examined a sample of 130 images. Of those 92 were at the lowest level of seriousness. But eight were classed as level five – the worst ranking possible. Eleven images were rated level four, 15 at level three and five at level two. Roberts, 44, was arrested on May 5 last year and later charged with nine counts of make and possessing indecent images. He has since been divorced by his wife, has no access to his children, is bankrupt and has lost his job. Benedict Kelleher, defending, said: ‘His life and that of his now ex-wife and children has obviously been gravely affected by this offence.’ He added: ‘Due to his own actions he is now not seeing his children and has, in all areas of his life, certainly been punished.’ Roberts, who has no previous convictions, claimed in interview that the images were sent to his computer remotely and that he received no sexual gratification from them. He later admitted nine charges at Portsmouth Crown Court – six of making an indecent image of a child and two of possessing indecent images of a child. Roberts, of Lidiard Gardens, Southsea, also pleaded guilty to possessing an extreme pornographic image. In sentencing him, Judge Roger Hetherington said: ‘Courts in this area have a very difficult sentencing task because the public, rightly, are disgusted by this sort of offence and the very fact of the existence of these photographs and films on the internet which people like you have downloaded means that children somewhere in the world have been seriously abused in order to obtain them.’ Roberts was sentenced to a three-year community order under supervision. He was also ordered to do 100 hours of unpaid work. He has had to sign the Sex Offenders’ Register. The computers and associated equipment seized will be destroyed.