A CONVICTED OSWESTRY SEX OFFENDER HAS BEEN JAILED AGAIN AFTER HE TRIED TO HIDE HIS SEARCHES FOR CHILDREN FROM POLICE BY BUILDING A ‘VIRTUAL PC’.
Joseph Eccles, aged 28 and residing on Oswald Place, was given a combined sentence of 22 months for multiple charges related to child sexual abuse images, possession of extreme pornography, a prohibited child image, and breach of a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO).At Shrewsbury Crown Court, Judge Peter Barrie imposed two consecutive prison terms.
Eccles was sentenced to 10 months for five offences, including possessing over 850 images categorised as A, B, and C, reduced from 15 months after an early guilty plea.
Additionally, he received a 12-month sentence, reduced from 18 months, for breaching the SHPO issued in 2017, which prohibited certain activities and was linked to similar offenses, as well as for inciting a child to perform a sexual act.
This sentence was served consecutively.
A new SHPO was also imposed, valid until 2038.
Prosecutor Nigel Stelling informed the court that Eccles admitted guilt to all charges at Kidderminster Magistrates Court in June.
He was arrested at 7am on October 8, 2021, at his former residence on Unicorn Road.
A police search uncovered multiple devices, which Eccles acknowledged owning during the interview.
The devices stored images depicting the abuse of children along with animals, including bestiality content.
Among the images seized were 253 classified as category A, with 16 videos, 93 as category B (including four videos), and 499 as category C (with 14 videos).
Eccles claimed ownership of the gadgets but denied having any sexual interest in children or that images resided on the devices.
In January 2023, during ongoing police investigations, officers found additional devices at his home and discovered he had constructed a virtual PC to conceal his internet activity, breaching his SHPO.
During mitigation, solicitor Alexa Carrier stated that Eccles understood the harm caused to his victims and requested the shortest possible sentence.
In his sentencing remarks, Judge Barrie highlighted that Eccles initially did not disclose all devices to the authorities and tried to conceal his offending.
The judge acknowledged the 18-month delay in analysing the devices, which he considered in sentencing.
He condemned Eccles for deliberately creating a virtual PC to erase his browsing history while under investigation, linking this to his attempt to hide his activities from law enforcement.
The judge emphasised that Eccles’s behaviour posed a significant risk to children and concurred with probation officers’ assessment of his high risk status.
Eccles will be released on licence after serving half his sentence and will be subject to 12 months of supervision.
