Leeds pervert began downloading child abuse videos as a young teenager, court hears

West Yorkshire Police had traced the illegal activity to an IP address at Templegate Avenue in Halton and raided the property on June 22 last year.

They arrested Thomas William Messruther-Brown and seized his phone and laptop.

Most of the illegal material was found on his laptop, with two videos found on the 22-year-old’s phone.

In total, there were 143 videos and 22 images at Category A – the most serious – 299 videos and 38 images at Category B and 17 videos and 25 images at Category C.

The police determined that he had been downloading the vile videos and photos from February 2014 to May 2021, and had sought them from illegal websites and cloud-storage devices.

The children being abused ranged from age six to 16, and some of the videos were over an hour in length, prosecutor Philip Adams told Leeds Crown Court this week.

During his first police interview he denied any wrongdoing, but during a second interview five months later he gave a prepared statement in which he accepted responsibility.

He admitted three counts of possessing illegal images.

Mitigating, Sean Smith said Messruther-Brown has no previous convictions but had already completed the Safer Lives course, which helps online sex offenders understand their behaviour.

He said: “It’s clear he is an individual who has required and received a significant amount of help.

"He spent long periods in isolation on his bedroom and has explored his sexuality at a young age that has all contributed to these offences taking place.”

Judge Neil Clark made reference to Messruther-Brown’s isolation and a diagnosis of autism.

He told him: “You have never troubled the courts before and I feel it’s unlikely you will do so in future.

"It’s important that you have sought help to ensure you never do this again. You have already taken significant steps.”

He gave him an 18-month community order with 30 rehabilitation days, ordered him to sign the sex offenders register for five years and gave him a five-year sexual harm prevention order (SHPO), which will limit his internet use.