July 2008 Church reader admits having indecent images of children A LAY preacher at a Gornal Church has been put behind bars for two years after he was found to have over 42,700 indecent photographs of children carefully stored on his computor. Ralph Weaver, a 64 year old gas fitter, was also found to have more than 1,780 pornographic films in the vile collection at his semi-detached home in Sedgley. The images were described as “utterly repulsive” and “appalling” at Wolverhampton Crown Court and collected by Weaver to satisfy his addiction to child pornography. Judge Nicholas Webb told Weaver it was clear he had sought out the internet sites with “stealth and determination” and he added, “This a massive fall from grace for a man who has lived a respectable and industrious life.” Weaver of The Northway, Sedgley, – a senior member of the congregation at St Peters Church in Gornal – admitted 11 charges involving the taking, making and possessing of indecent images of children – some aged between six and 12 months. He was further ordered by the Judge to register as a Sex Offender for 10 years and barred from ever working with children. Mr Gurdeep Garcha defending told the court other members of the Church had indicated there was forgiveness in their hearts and they were prepared to support Weaver’s family. He said Weaver was semi-retired and, because he had more time on his hands, he had sought out the sites through curiosity but he became “addicted to the material.” Mr Garcha said that was the reason he had accumulated such a large collection of child pornography and concluded, “He realises he has a problem.” Weaver’s wife, he went on, had had to deal with the “shock and horror” of finding what had been going on after 45 years of marriage but she had made it clear she was prepared to stand by her husband. Mr Mark Phillips prosecuting said police received information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation that identified Weaver as a member of a group accessing sites showing indecent images of children. “It is safe to say he did not stumble upon these sites,” said Mr. Phillips. “He went to some lengths to gain access to them.” Police officers seized Weaver’s computor and found 42,724 still images of children with 1,781 more movie clips – many of them at the worst possible level. The officers also recovered a file entitled “Stories” from the computor which contained written accounts of the rape and torture of young children. The Judge described Weaver as a “devout Christian” and concluded, “Over a period of months between August and February this year you indulged your preoccupation with child pornography. It is clear you were addicted to such material. “The worst level contained images that were deeply unpleasant and the children involved must have suffered considerable pain. You had a high level of personal interest in these images.”