October 2009 Wirral man jailed after sending indecent images of himself to teenage girls on the internet A court heard how a middle-aged Wirral man sent indecent images of himself to teenage girls claiming to be a 17-year-old boy and also downloaded thousands of child porn images from the internet. Richard Helsby, who worked for Liverpool city council for 22 years, filmed himself and sent the images to girls aged 13 and 15 and got them and a 14-year-old girl to send images of themselves either in underwear or partly undressed to him. Liverpool Crown Court heard that he distributed the images to another man and when police raided his home and seized his computer they found almost 3,500 indecent images he had downloaded. Joanne Maxwell, prosecuting, said that the offences came to light after a former girlfriend of 46-year-old Helsby, told Somerset and Devon police she had discovered on her computer that he had been pretending to be a 15-year-old boy and having sexually explicit conversations with young girls using MSN chat sites. Police officers went to his then home in Lindeth Road, Wallasey, in October, 2007, and seized his computer, discs, mobile phone and camera. They found indecent images, mainly in category one involving posing, but also others including seven in the most serious category, said Miss Maxwell. They also found that he had been pretending to be a 17-year-old teenager and sent indecent images of himself to teenage girls. Helsby, who has a previous conviction for indecently assaulting a eight-year-old girl 25 years ago, pleaded guilty to 12 offences of making indecent images and five of distributing such images. Judge Nigel Gilmour, QC, jailed him for 16 months, ordered him to sign on the Sex Offenders Register for ten years and made a Sexual Offences Prevention Order banning him from being in the company of under 16 year olds. Quentin Neal, defending, said that Helsby, of Arnside Road, Wallasey, had been married for 14 years. He has difficulties and needs help, which he will not receive in prison. “He will be a greater risk without treatment and he will also have difficulties obtaining employment,” he added.