FRANK MORLAND FROM BEDLINGTON ESCAPES JAIL AFTER BEING CAUGHT WITH CHILD INDECENT IMAGES IN NORTHUMBERLAND

In May 2018, a disturbing case emerged involving Frank Morland, a pensioner from Bedlington, Northumberland, who was found to possess a large collection of illegal and highly disturbing images and videos depicting children. The police investigation was triggered after authorities received intelligence suggesting that Morland’s IP address had been used to search for indecent images of children between October and December 2015.

Authorities executed a search warrant at Morland’s residence, located on The Wynding in Bedlington, where they seized multiple electronic devices, including a computer and two hard drives, for forensic analysis. The investigation uncovered a horrifying collection of material, including eight videos classified as Category A — the most severe level of child abuse content — which involved penetrative sexual acts with minors aged between nine and twelve. Additionally, investigators found 352 prohibited images of children and 13 videos of extreme pornography involving women and animals.

During the initial police interview, Morland, who is 72 years old and partially sighted, admitted to officers that he had developed an addiction to viewing such material online. He explained that he had “formed an addiction” to the sick images and videos, acknowledging his involvement with the illegal content. When questioned about whether he had been actively searching for indecent images, Morland chose not to respond.

Following forensic examination, Morland was re-interviewed, at which point he fully confessed to having an addiction to viewing child abuse videos. His guilty plea included charges of making indecent images, possessing prohibited images of children, and possessing extreme pornography, which depicted women with animals.

Despite the severity of the charges, Morland was spared immediate imprisonment. Instead, Newcastle Crown Court, sitting at the Moot Hall, sentenced him to eight months in jail, suspended for two years. The judge, Recorder Ben Nolan QC, took into account Morland’s age, poor health, and deteriorating eyesight, as well as the fact that he had begun to address his issues. The court also imposed a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and mandated that Morland sign the Sex Offenders’ Register for the same period, emphasizing the seriousness of his crimes and the need for ongoing monitoring.