PETER CHORLEY OF MELKSHAM SENTENCED FOR CHILD ABUSE MATERIAL IN 2014

In July 2014, Peter Chorley, a 46-year-old from Melksham, was sentenced to 28 months in prison after police discovered extensive child abuse imagery on his devices. During a raid in October 2012, officers seized his computers, CDs, DVDs, and an external hard drive, uncovering a collection of over 63 hours of movies depicting children being sexually abused, along with numerous still images. Prosecutor Colin Meeke told Swindon Crown Court that the material indicated Chorley stored the content for repeated viewing, with almost all of the children involved under the age of 13—some as young as just two years old. He stated, “Apart from the fact that they are stored to return to in various places, it is clear that there was more, but a hard drive was lost. No further action was taken over that.” The police found approximately 431 indecent images, including nearly 300 movies and 154 still images over a period of six and a half years. The collection also contained 30 prohibited images of children and 35 images depicting extreme pornography involving animals. Chorley admitted to exploring the images but denied downloading and saving them intentionally, claiming he was researching rather than seeking gratification. Defense solicitor Paul Trotman suggested a suspended sentence would be more appropriate, emphasizing Chorley’s depression and physical condition, including crutches due to eczema. However, Judge Tim Mousley QC sentenced him to 28 months in prison, highlighting the disturbing nature of the images, the fact that the material had been stored over seven years, and stressing the vulnerability of the young victims, with the youngest being only two. The judge also imposed a sexual offences prevention order and mandated Chorley register as a sex offender for ten years.

Earlier in June 2014, Chorley pleaded guilty at North West Wiltshire Magistrates’ Court to seven offences, including possessing 427 indecent images of children, downloading prohibited images, and possessing material involving bestiality. Police had traced Chorley via peer-to-peer networks used for sharing illegal content, and forensic examination of his computer revealed files stored in clearly marked folders, indicating an attempt to make the content more accessible for later viewing. Some videos had been watched the night before his arrest, with about 95 percent of the images depicting children under 13, including some as young as two. Over 250 images were classified as severe category A. After his plea, Chorley was released on bail and scheduled to appear at Swindon Crown Court in July 2014 for sentencing, where he faced at least nine months' imprisonment and would be required to register as a sex offender for a decade.