Sunderland pervert jailed after specialist cops found he breached ban on access to the internet

Police visited John Vanstone's home after officers from the National Crime Agency discovered an internet account connected to him had uploaded the picture onto the social media site.

Newcastle Crown Court heard the 62-year-old, who has to abide by a Sexual Harm Prevention order and is on the sex offender register for life as a result of past convictions, must declare any computer devices he has access to.

When confronted at his home at North Bridge Street, Sunderland, last month, while still on licence from a previous prison sentence, Vanstone claimed he had just one Nokia mobile, which was incapable of accessing the internet.

But when officers rang a number they had for him on file, a second device started ringing.

Prosecutor Neil Jones told the court: "A mobile phone was ringing in his bedroom.

"They went into his bedroom and found two devices, a mobile phone which had been ringing in response to their call and a tablet."

Mr Jones said both were capable of accessing the internet but Vanstone had declared neither of the devices to the authorities.

The court heard Vanstone has two previous convictions involving indecent photographs of children.

He was jailed for 30 months in 2018 for making and distributing such images and had been released from that sentence last December.

Vanstone admitted breach of a sexual harm prevention order and has now been jailed for 20 months.

Judge Penny Moreland told him: "This is a deliberate breach.

"The risk with your possession of such devices is the risk that indecent images of children will be accessed again.

"Those are photographs of real children who are really suffering the abuse which you appear to enjoy looking at."

The judge added: "You pose a risk of the commission of further offences. The risk you pose is not manageable in the community."

Fiona Lamb, defending, said Vanstone had obtained the internet devices to access his universal credit account and manage job applications and had wrongly feared he may be returned to prison if he declared them.

Miss Lamb said Vanstone is "ashamed of his record" and suffers from serious medical conditions which cause him in a lot of pain.

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