Collected vile pornography which showed children as young as nine being subjected to horrific abuse.

William Lai, 67, Pleads Guilty to Possessing Child Abuse Images

William Lai, 67, has been sentenced for possessing indecent images of children as young as nine. He appeared at the Old Bailey and pleaded guilty to three charges of possessing indecent images of children.

The charges stem from a raid conducted by the National Crime Agency (NCA) in November 2019 at the home of Lai's brother, Michael, on Castlemaine Avenue, Croydon. During the raid, Michael confessed to downloading indecent images and revealed that a computer tower and three hard drives in his home belonged to his brother, William.

An examination of the devices revealed indecent images of children dating back to January 2015, with 11,863 images attributed to William.

Prosecutor Alice Holloway stated, "You must understand that those are images of real children being abused, children who will have to live knowing that those images are out there for the rest of their lives."

Judge Medland acknowledged the three-year delay between the raid and the brothers' charging in March 2023, stating that he was obliged to take this delay into consideration during sentencing. However, he emphasized that the court takes this offense very seriously, deeming it "disgusting and offensive."

Judge Medland expressed confusion over the police's delay in charging the Lai brothers, stating that he could not understand why it took over three years.

William, residing on Pheasant Field Drive in Derby, was sentenced to a 20-month prison sentence, suspended for two years. Michael received a two-year prison sentence, also suspended for two years.

Both brothers will be listed on the sex offenders register for ten years and will be subject to a sexual harm prevention order. William was also fined £1,500.