Man Jailed for Possessing Child Abuse Images

Carl Webb, formerly of Gloucester Road in Cheltenham, has been sentenced to three years and three months in prison for possessing nearly 400 illegal images of children on his mobile phone.

Webb, 37, admitted to making 240 Category C indecent images of children, 144 prohibited images, and breaching a sexual harm prevention order. He also admitted failing to report to a police station and being in breach of a suspended prison sentence.

The sentencing took place at Gloucester Crown Court on 14 March. Webb has a history of child sex offenses dating back over two decades, including convictions for indecent assault of a child in 2002 and sexual activity with a child in 2009.

Prosecutor Alec Small revealed that on 28 September 2022, police visited Webb's home to ensure he was complying with his sexual harm prevention order. Webb admitted to having a borrowed phone he had not previously declared, which officers seized and found to contain indecent images of children.

Mr. Small further stated that Webb had failed to attend a police station to sign the sex offender register on 1 March 2023.

Webb is currently serving a three-year jail term imposed in October 2023 for breaching a community order.

Catherine Spedding, defending Webb, stated that he is "keen to look at the root cause of his offending" by participating in a sex offender program. "Once he is sentenced, he hopes to be moved to a prison where he can undertake that positive and useful course," she added. "He is looking forward to that because he wants to cease this sort of offending."

In addition to the jail sentence, Webb was also issued with a new sexual harm prevention order.