July 2014
Former marine avoids jail despite having thousands of indecent images of kids on his computer
A SIXTY four year old Southport man, who was found to have more than 2,000 “vile” indecent images of children on his computer,has narrowly escaped going to jail.
David Oliver, who had shared some of the images, wiped away tears in the dock at Liverpool Crown Court as a judge said he believed there was a sufficient prospect of rehabilitation and suspended a 12 month jail sentence for two years.
The court heard that since his arrest he has voluntarily attended the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, a child protection agency, and successfully completed courses to aimed at changing behaviour.
Recorder Richard Pratt, QC, told Oliver, a former Royal Marine, “I want to make it plain to you and others that this vile trade will ordinarily involve, even people of good character, going into custody.
”It is only because you have demonstrated some self-help initiative that I am able to take an alternative and thoroughly lenient course.“
Oliver, of Pine Grove, Southport, had pleaded guilty to a total of 13 charges, involving eight offences of downloading child porn images; possessing 2,183 such images between November 2006 and July 11 last year; three of distributing indecent images and one of possessing 10 extreme pornographic images.
The judge also placed him under supervision for two years with attendance on the stringent Northumbria Sex Offenders Programme. He imposed a five year Sexual Offences Prevention Order restricting his internet use and ordered him to sign the Sex Offenders Register for ten years.
He told Oliver: ”The images I have seen, which were on your computer, were vile and disgusting. They do nothing more or less than advance child sex in this country and internationally.
“It is by people like you owning and possessing items such as this that the exploitation of innocent children is furthered.”
David Watson, prosecuting, said that Merseyside police received information from the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children about child porn images linked to Oliver’s IP address in March last year.
Officers executed a search warrant on July 10 and he immediately admitted he was responsible for the images. At Copy Lane police station he “admitted storing and distributing images and said he had engaged in the behaviour of storing indecent images for about five years.”
When his computer equipment was analysed it was found to contain a total of 2,183 indecent images, of which 492 where in the most serious category. On two occasions during Skype conversations, with two different people, he had sent them five indecent images, one of which was in the most serious group.
Andrew Otto, defending, said that Oliver, who has no previous convictions, had referred himself to the Lucy Faithfull Foundation the day after his arrest and completed the course last November in the West Midlands “at quite some expense.”
He and his wife have returned to their church where they have been receiving guidance and help, he added.
Oliver wept as Mr Otto told of problems he had suffered as a teenager before spending 20 exemplary years in the Royal Marines, mainly in catering. He also produced testimonials on his behalf.
