A 22-year-old Derby man, Luke Ringer, has been sentenced for possessing nearly 3,000 vile images of child abuse.

Derby Crown Court heard that Ringer had been accessing and viewing these horrific images and videos for over seven years, gaining sexual gratification from them. The images included category A material, depicting very young children being raped, as well as category B and C images, and prohibited animated images of children. Some of the images involved babies and pre-pubescent children being abused.

During a raid on his home in July 2020, police seized Ringer's mobile phone and computer tower, discovering the vast collection of child abuse material. They also found images of adults engaging in sexual activity with animals and web search terms indicating Ringer's interest in illegal pornography.

Judge Martin Hurst, sentencing Ringer, stated that the children depicted in the images are real children being raped, often by their own parents. He expressed disbelief at Ringer's claim that he did not have a sexual interest in children.

Ringer pleaded guilty to possession of indecent images of children, extreme pornographic images, and prohibited indecent images. He was given an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, and ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work, pay £300 in costs, and attend a 43-day sex offender program. He was also placed on the sex offender register for 10 years and subjected to a 10-year sexual harm prevention order.