Music teacher with '˜vast collection' of child abuse pictures avoids jail

A NORTH Yorkshire teacher with a 'vast collection' of indecent images of children, has avoided jail.
Kenneth Nelson, 55, outside York Crown Court. Picture: Ross Parry AgencyKenneth Nelson, 55, outside York Crown Court. Picture: Ross Parry Agency
Kenneth Nelson, 55, outside York Crown Court. Picture: Ross Parry Agency

Kenneth Nelson, 55, was investigated after officers received a tip-off from the national Child Exploitation Online Protection police squad, when he posted a picture of naked girls on the social media site, Pintrest.

A court previously heard that Nelson, who worked at a number of different schools, maintained he had done so “by accident.”

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After avoiding jail today, the teacher left court with his face covered by a maroon knapsack, emblazoned with the phrase “Youth and Children’s Sing Choirs”.

Officers attended Nelson’s address on June 14, this year, and he was arrested the same day - a subsequent search of his home turned up 16,297 images over several devices.

York Crown Court heard the cache of indecent images, which for the most part were rated Category C, the least serious category, were discovered on pen drives, flash drives, a computer tower and a laptop.

The father-of-one, from Wistow, between York and Selby, had previously pleaded guilty to three counts of possessing indecent images of children and one count of possessing a prohibited image of children.

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Recorder Richard Wright QC, who described Nelson’s stash as an “enormous number of images”, sentenced him to six months imprisonment, suspended for 12 months.

He told Nelson: “You had become quite literally obsessed with viewing images of that type.

“The fact is you chose to search out such images and view them, you did it quite deliberately, you did it repeatedly.”

The judge added: ‘The reality is all of these children were being abused and exploited by people like you who view these images for their own perverted, sexual gratification.”

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Joe Culley, prosecuting, told the court in total Nelson was caught with one image in the most serious category, 120 images in the middle category and 16,176 images in the least serious category.

There were also 87 prohibited images.

The court heard the images were mainly of children between four and six, and 12 and 16.

Mr Culley said: ‘He admitted searching for pre-teen pornographic images for excitement.”

Adding that Nelson said he “felt ashamed and disgusted by his behavior”.

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The prosecutor told the court aggravating features in the case were the high volume of images and Nelson’s deliberate internet searches.

Lee-Anne Robins-Hicks, defending, said, at the suggestion of police, Nelson had written to the parents of people “he had previously been teaching” to explain these proceedings.

She told the court her client accepts full responsibility for downloading all images, but believes the Category A image was involuntarily downloaded while bulk loading Category C images.

Judge Wright QC, also sentenced Nelson to a community order with a 20-day rehabilitation requirement.

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He made him the subject of Sexual Harm Prevention Order which, due to having employment in the past which allowed him coming into contact with children, he made indefinite.

Nelson was told he would be placed on the sex offenders register and have to pay a victim surcharge.