ABBOTS LANGLEY MAN STEPHEN STARKY RECEIVES COMMUNITY ORDER IN ST ALBANS COURT

In March 2014, Stephen Starkey, a resident of Abbots Langley, was sentenced after being found in possession of nearly 3,000 images of child sex abuse and extreme pornography. Starkey, 53, from Jacketts Field, was given a Community Order during a court hearing after a judge noted he had sought help.

Police conducted a raid on June 4 of the previous year and confiscated two Acer laptops belonging to Starkey, as revealed in the proceedings at St Albans Crown Court. Prosecutor Neil King explained that the newer computer contained only six images of child pornography—classified across different levels of severity—with one at Level 2, four at Level 3, and one at Level 4.

More extensive evidence was found on an older machine, which held 26 films and 2,663 images at Level 1, the least serious category; 21 movies and 29 images at Level 2; 12 films and 16 images at Level 3; 105 movies and 34 images at Level 4; and seven movies at Level 5, the most serious level. Overall, police discovered 171 movies and 2,748 images, including 123 images of extreme pornography involving sexual acts with animals, as well as 48 prohibited images showing the lower halves of children's bodies.

Starkey pleaded guilty to twelve counts of possessing indecent images—specifically, downloading such material—along with one count of possessing extreme pornography and one of possessing prohibited images of children. He had no prior convictions.

He explained to investigators that his actions were driven by curiosity. Following his arrest, Starkey sought assistance from the Lucy Faithful Foundation, a charity dedicated to helping offenders avoid further involvement with child sex abuse images.

His defense lawyer, Andrew Campbell, stated: “He recognized the full horror of the images when confronted about them. He has been open about it and has got help at his own expense.”

Judge John Plumstead acknowledged the police’s initiative of informing offenders about the “Stop it now” scheme and praised their efforts. Addressing Starkey directly, the judge said, “You are rightly ashamed of yourself, but you have taken steps to have help. In many cases the images you have viewed involved serious sexual offending. If people like you weren’t there to view them, they would not be abused.”

The court ordered Starkey to be under supervision for two years and to attend a Sexual Offender Treatment Programme. He is also required to register as a Sex Offender for five years and have risk management software installed on his computers for police monitoring.

Additionally, Starkey was told to pay £250 in prosecution costs. As he was leaving court, Judge Plumstead issued a final warning: “This court does not expect to see you again.”