In 2019, the Offender Database reported that Peter Stevens, 54, of Hamberts Road, South Woodham Ferrers, Essex, was sentenced to nine months in prison at Chelmsford Crown Court. Stevens, a father who was described in court as a “family man,” was caught filming young girls during Skype communications and possessing hundreds of indecent images of children.
The court heard that Stevens used social media to contact girls “on the cusp of 15 and 16 years” and recorded his video calls with them using a separate electronic device. When his computers, including an Acer laptop and a Seagate hard drive, were seized by Essex Police on August 7, 2017, investigators discovered over 300 indecent images. The paedophile had organised the “sick images” into separate, named folders. Forensic analysis revealed 265 Category C images and one image in the more serious Category B classification. Judge Patricia Lynch noted that it was unknown whether the children even knew they were being recorded during the Skype sessions.
During the sentencing on February 18, 2019, Stevens’ defence counsel argued that he had previously been of good character and that his wife remained supportive of him. However, Judge Lynch refused to suspend the sentence, emphasising that children deserve protection from predators who view their images for sexual gratification. She stated that such crimes cause “untold damage” to children, knowing that their images may last forever online.
Peter Stevens was sentenced to nine months in prison, reduced from 12 months due to his early guilty plea. He received concurrent four-month sentences for additional counts of making indecent photographs of a child. The judge also ordered the forfeiture and destruction of his computer equipment.
As a result of his convictions for child sex offences, Stevens was handed a ten-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) and ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for ten years. He will be managed under the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) in Essex. This ensures that Essex Police and the National Probation Service will strictly monitor his digital activities and residency to protect the public from further harm.
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