A MAN who was caught with indecent images of children on his devices is to be sentenced in the crown court.

Callum MacDougall, of Abbots Walk in Holywell, appeared at Mold Magistrates Court on Thursday.

The 33-year-old admitted that between May 2021 and October the following year, he breached a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) by joining or subscribing to a social networking website or mobile applications without telling police in advance, which he was prohibited from doing.

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In addition to two further breaches of the order - by having software installed on his device which may conceal his identity and having access to cloud storage or peer-to-peer file sharing software without notifying police - he also admitted three counts of making indecent images of children.

Prosecutor Molly Rumsey told the court the defendant's devices were checked as per his SHPO.

When the internet history of a tablet and laptop were examined, 54 category A photos, 56 category B photos and 64 category C photos of an indecent nature depicting children were revealed, in addition to three prohibited images and more than 500 images depicting "extreme pornography."

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Ms Rumsey told Deputy District Judge Paul Conlon that the matters were not suitable to be sentenced in the Magistrates Court and invited him to send them up for sentence before a Crown Court.

Andy Holliday, defending, said his client "fully appreciates" that custody is "extremely likely," but told the court MacDougall hadn't been in trouble since 2019 and invited the court to order a pre-sentence report to assist with sentencing.

The Leader:

The Deputy District Judge agreed with both parties and the sentence was listed for July 20 at Mold Crown Court.

He told the defendant: "Given the nature of the offences you have pleaded guilty to, I am of the view that they fall outside the sentencing powers of the Magistrates Court.

"I can't rule out the possibility that the Crown Court may wish to impose a sentence other than immediate custody, so I ask the probation service to interview you in order for a pre-sentence report to be provided."