January 2008
Child abuse images man who blamed parents jailed
A PERVERT who tried to blame his own parents when sick child porn videos were found on his computer has been jailed for six months.
David Cole, 34, was arrested as part of Operation Ore, a national paedophile investigation, after downloading two videos in the summer of 2006.
Prosecuting, Giles Bridge told Leeds Crown Court the videos were both Level Four, the second-highest level of child pornography, showing men having sexual intercourse with young girls.
In one of the videos, the victim was aged between just four and six years old.
The court heard how Cole, who lived with his parents on Mountbatten Avenue, Wakefield, tried to blame neighbours and family members – including his parents – when police found the sickening clips on his computer in October 2006.
Mr Bridge said: “He denied being the person responsible for downloading the images, saying other people had access to his computer.
“He said other people, including his mother and father, could have downloaded the images.”
The court heard how Cole had deleted one of the videos, a seven-minute clip featuring a girl aged between 11 and 13, before his arrest.
Defending, Robin Frieze said: “The defendant is not an unintelligent man and he has an understanding of how computers work.
“He fully accepts responsibility, he’s ashamed and he understands the seriousness of abusing this kind of material.”
The court heard that Cole’s estranged wife found indecent images on his computer in 2004, but the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to press charges because there was not enough evidence. Cole no longer has a relationship with his wife or children.
Mr Frieze also told the court that Cole had suffered health problems, including depression, and underwent heart surgery a few years ago.
Sentencing him, the Recorder of Leeds, Judge Peter Collier QC, said: “When interviewed, you protested your innocence and sought to blame members of your own family, even your parents, as being responsible for these images.
“They are very serious because they involve the abuse of children, the effects of which are too often seen before these courts.”
Cole pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing indecent images of children. He was jailed for six months for each offence, to be served concurrently.
This is the latest Operation Ore case to be prosecuted in West Yorkshire since the investigation was launched in the UK in 1999.
