Paedophile jailed again over child sex images.

A convicted paedophile has been jailed after being found with over 250 indecent images of children, described by a judge as some of "the most disgusting images" he has ever seen.

Phillip Belcher, 33, pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children, but only after initially taking the case to court. The images were found on his devices in 2019, putting him in breach of a suspended sentence and a sexual harm prevention order.

Belcher had previously been convicted in Reading in 2019 for making indecent images of children and was given a 10-year sexual harm prevention order and a suspended sentence. However, police found a Sony tablet, a phone, and an SD memory card at his home in Colne in August 2019, which he had not disclosed.

The memory card contained disturbing images of children as young as a few months old, as well as one of necrophilia. Belcher initially attempted to blame his partner and a family member for the images, claiming they may have viewed them.

His suspended sentence was activated, and he was jailed for 15 months. Following his release in June 2020, another mobile phone was found at his home that had been used to search for child sexual abuse on Google.

Judge Guy Mathieson, sentencing Belcher at Preston Crown Court, stated, "It was entirely your choice to span out these proceedings from 2021 until last year until you admitted your guilt before trial. At one stage you even blamed your partner. At 33, you might want to start to take some responsibility for your actions. The type of images you take some sexual gratification from are abhorrent. You are taking sexual delight in the abuse and torture of tiny children, babies in some cases. When it comes to your pre-sentence report you are blaming everyone else. You even say you may have come across the images by accident. You are a wholly unrepentant paedophile and you are not someone who wants to change or embrace change. You are quite happy with who you are. The images you have downloaded contain some of the most disgusting images I have ever had the misfortune to come across."

Belcher, who has 15 convictions for 19 offences, was sentenced to two years in prison and ordered to sign the sex offender's register for 10 years. His existing sexual harm prevention order, which will be in place for another six years, was not altered.