May 2017 Parish councillor who was a pillar of his community jailed for disgusting crimes A former parish councillor has admitted viewing indecent images of children after he was caught in possession of almost 600 pictures. Police discovered the stash after raiding Peter Bird’s home in Crowland last October, Lincoln Crown Court heard. Officers executed the search warrant after receiving information that an IP address belonging to the 72-year-old, who served on the town’s council, had downloaded a category B indecent image of a child. Mark Knowles, prosecuting, said when police attended at the address Bird immediately admitted: “I know why you’re here.” Officers seized various computer equipment and memory sticks belonging to Bird. They were analysed and found to contain 52 indecent images in the most serious category of A, 109 category B images and 432 category C images. During police interview Bird admitted being on a site and moving images from a memory stick on to his computer to view. Bird had been a councillor in Crowland for four years but following his arrest felt the need to resign his post along with other community roles, including Crowland in Bloom. The court heard Bird was also recently assaulted outside his local pub and was now planning to move away from Crowland with his wife. Bird, of East Street, Crowland, admitted making category A indecent images between January and October 2015, and making category B and C images between 2013 and 2016. He must also register as a sex offender for ten years and was made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order. Passing sentence, Judge Michael Heath told him:”You are an intelligent man. You served as a parish councillor for a number of years and you served as a special constable for 20 years. “But over a period you became involved in the viewing of indecent photographs of children.” The judge added: “Real children are abused in the manufacture of this material.” Bird was jailed for eight months. April 2017 Former parish councillor admits making indecent images of children A former Crowland Parish Councillor has been sent for sentence at Lincoln Crown Court after admitting three charges of making almost 600 indecent images of children, some as young as five. Peter Bird (72), of East Street, Crowland but presently living at an address in Sutton, Surrey, admitted the offences, all said to have taken place between May 8, 2013 and October 26, 2016, when he appeared before magistrates at Boston. Prosecuting, Jim Clare said the cases were not suitable to be dealt with in the Magistrates Court as their powers of punishment were not enough. The magistrates sent Bird, who has no previous convictions, to Lincoln Crown Court for sentence at a later date and remanded him on bail with conditions regarding his access to children under 16. He was also placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register with immediate effect. Bird resigned from the parish council earlier this year