A MAN who downloaded indecent images of children has been given a suspended prison sentence.

Police who raided Tommy Simpson’s home in 2020 and seized a laptop, an iPhone and several USB drives, Ipswich Crown Court heard.

When the devices were analysed they were found to contain an indecent video of a child in the most serious level A category.

There was also one indecent image of a child in category B and ten in the lowest level C category.

Simpson, 27, of Hooper Avenue, Colchester, admitted making an indecent movie of a child and indecent indecent images of children.

He was given a nine month prison sentence but it was suspended for two years.

He was also ordered to serve a 30 day rehabilitation activity requirement, ordered to do 160 hours unpaid work and to pay £1,200 costs.

Simpson was also made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for ten years and ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register for the same period.

Sentencing Simpson, Judge Emma Peters said he should be ashamed of himself for viewing the images and said the market for indecent images was fuelled by men like him who for some “inexplicable reason” enjoyed watching them.

Adam Norris, prosecuting, accepted the number of indecent images downloaded by Simpson was very small compared to some cases that came before the court where thousands of images had been downloaded.

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He said the category A movie which lasted ten minutes was of a girl aged nine to eleven while the indecent images featured girls aged between five and 13.

The court was told Simpson was “very sorry” for committing the offences and wanted to reassure the court he wouldn’t reoffend in the same way again.

He had been using alcohol and cannabis and had too much time on his hands.