KEITH SAYER FROM BASINGSTOKE SENTENCED FOR MASSIVE CHILD SEX ABUSE IMAGE COLLECTION
A man from Basingstoke, Keith Sayer, has been sentenced after it was revealed he possessed over 178,000 images of child sex abuse, including disturbing images of newborns and toddlers.The court was told that Sayer compiled this extensive collection on a network of 19 devices, USB sticks, and hard drives, arranged in a "deliberate and systematic" filing system that caused "immeasurable" harm to children worldwide.
The investigation uncovered that Sayer’s collection began immediately after his release from prison, where he had previously been convicted for possessing indecent images of children.
He served a 16-month sentence back in 2014.
Sayer, 39 years old and formerly residing on Bolton Crescent in South Ham, admitted to feeling "sick" and described himself as "obsessed," telling a psychiatrist he spent approximately five hours each day viewing the images and videos.
Police reports detailed that Sayer was also found in possession of six paedophile manuals, as well as items such as cable ties, masking tape, bungee ties, children’s colouring sets, and a newspaper article about a child's abduction.
These items were discovered during a raid on his bedsit, as prosecutor Sophie Chaplain explained to Winchester Crown Court on Thursday.
Authorities first identified Sayer’s involvement in accessing indecent images in April 2019, after detecting searches from two IP addresses.
Following investigation, officers traced the activity back to Sayer, who led them to a cupboard under a sink where he had hidden multiple devices.
Under restrictions from a Sex Offenders Protection Order (SOPO), which was issued after his earlier conviction, Sayer was banned from using such devices.
When the devices were examined, they revealed a "deliberate and systematic" classification of the offending content, which included over 10,000 images categorized as Category A—covering "penetrative activity" and involving animals or sadism.
The Sentencing Council explains that Category A offences involve the most serious types of abuse.
Ms.
Chaplain also stated that Sayer had saved more than 1,000 movies in his collection.
During the court session, Sayer appeared via video link from Lewes Prison in East Sussex.
It was also noted that he used the TOR browser to access the dark web, which can conceal users' identities.
In mitigation, defense solicitor Rose Burns said, "He has never had a job, he had no ambition for himself.
He doesn’t have any intimate relationships and has said social interaction is something he wasn’t capable of." She described his obsession with these images as "an illness, a disease," comparable to addiction.
Burns requested a community order to enable Sayer to receive treatment, arguing that prison was not beneficial for either him or the public, stating, "It is the only way that this man is going to be diverted from his compulsive addiction." However, Judge Adam Feest imposed a more severe sentence than recommended, emphasizing the harm caused by viewing such material.
He stated, "It is sometimes said that people who view images of child abuse don’t cause harm to children, but that is incorrect.
Anyone who has images of children being raped is creating a market that harms children across the world.
The harm caused by this quantity of images involving the rape of babies and children is beyond measure." Sayer received a sentence of 32 months for six charges of making indecent images, which was reduced slightly due to guilty pleas, plus an additional two years for breaching the SOPO.
For possessing the paedophile manuals, he was sentenced to six months, to run consecutively.
The total sentence amounts to three years and two months, though the judge noted Sayer is likely to serve only half of that.
In addition, the court imposed an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order, disqualification from working with children, and ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the images and manuals.
Sayer was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge.
A spokesperson for NSPCC commented on the case, saying, "Behind these images are often children who have been subjected to unthinkable pain and suffering.
By continuously seeking out such material, Sayer has contributed to ongoing harm by fueling demand for more abuse."
