SEAHAM MAN STEPHEN FLEET SENTENCED FOR SEEKING CHILD ABUSE IMAGES IN DURHAM

In February 2019, a Seaham man named Stephen Fleet was dealt with in court after being found to have downloaded alarming images depicting the abuse of boys over nearly ten years.

During the sentencing hearing at Durham Crown Court, Fleet's Probation Officer told the court that he claimed to have no sexual motivation for seeking such material. However, it was acknowledged that Fleet now recognizes he has a problematic issue and requires help.

Judge Jonathan Carroll addressed Fleet directly, stating, “It’s absolutely clear to me you have no real insight into your own sexuality and sexual motivation to commit these offences, and little or no effective insight into the victim harm. I regard you as one of those people who think that just by looking at this on your computer you are not causing harm. You are wrong. In seeking out this material you are, in fact, creating the market for some people to go out and produce more of this type of material. There are real children suffering abuse for people like you to view for sexual gratification.”

Martin Towers, representing Fleet, requested a suspended sentence, emphasizing that Fleet, who has no prior convictions, should be able to seek assistance. The judge responded, “Sometimes it is in the public’s interests that they will be better served by a sentence being passed so defendants can address their problems. These programmes, however, can only be effective for those who truly acknowledge they have a problem to fix. For that reason, and due to the nature of this material, the public would generally expect a prison sentence. Here, there is no justification for a non-custodial option.”

As a result, Fleet was sentenced to 12 months in prison and subjected to a 15-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order, along with a requirement to register as a sex offender for ten years. The court also ordered the police to seize and destroy the computer equipment involved.

The 58-year-old, residing on Mount Stewart Street in Seaham, had admitted to making indecent images of children in all three severity categories, downloading 160 such images, some animated. He also pleaded guilty to possessing 30 computer-generated images depicting children being abused.

Prosecutor Rebecca Brown stated that police seized the computers on October 17 of the previous year, and analysis revealed children as young as three, mainly boys, being beaten and sexually abused in the images.