A former teacher who downloaded more than 45,000 indecent images of children onto his computer devices was today (Wednesday) spared an immediate jail sentence.
Ian Bradbury, 66, who was described as having an addiction to downloading material onto his devices, was arrested after police carried out a raid on his home in Long Sutton back in August 2019.
Eunice Opare-Addo, prosecuting, told Lincoln Crown Court “Officers attended at the home address of the defendant due to information received by the police and he was arrested for making indecent images of children.”
As a result of the raid police took away three computer hard drives, a laptop and a tablet. A total of 46,485 indecent images of children were found on the devices including 330 in the most serious category. 565 of the images were moving images.
A further 755 prohibited images of children and 75 extreme pornographic images were found.
Miss Opare-Addo said “The defendant was interviewed. He made full admissions to downloading the images. He is a man of previous good character.”
Ian Stuart Bradbury of Roman Bank Long Sutton admitted three charges of making indecent images of children together with further charges of possession of prohibited images of children and possession of extreme pornographic images.
Neil Sands, in mitigation, said that following his arrest Bradbury paid to attend a sex offenders rehabilitation course and had done his best to put his offending behind him.
“He made full admissions in his interview and expressed his extreme disgust at what he had done.
“He has taken his own steps to address these problems. He has done all within his power to put matters right. There has been no further offending because he has spent a considerable amount of time addressing these problems. Part of the problem is that he had an addiction. There was some form of compulsion going on.
“When he worked, he did a difficult and demanding job. This is a man who has spent his life teaching,” said Mr Sands.
Bradbury was given a 12-month jail sentence suspended for two years with up to 50 rehabilitation activity requirement days.
Recorder Simon King placed him on the sex offenders register for 10 years and made a 10-year sexual harm prevention order. The devices on which the illegal images were found were ordered to be forfeited and destroyed.
The Recorder told Bradbury “You are someone who has spent much if not all of your working life in a teaching capacity, trying to help other people and building up the sort of reputation of which you and those around you could be proud. You have absolutely thrown that away.”
