MATTHEW JACKSON FROM GILWERN INVOLVED IN CHILD ABUSE IMAGES CASE NEAR ABERGAVENNY

In a disturbing case that has shocked the community near Abergavenny, Matthew Jackson, a 19-year-old resident of Gilwern, was found to have engaged in the viewing and distribution of highly inappropriate and illegal images involving children. The incident came to light after Gwent Police executed a search warrant at Jackson's home in Gilwern last February, uncovering a troubling collection of indecent images stored on his mobile devices and laptop.

Prosecutor Jenny Yeo detailed the findings to Cardiff Crown Court, revealing that the police recovered a range of images classified under different categories of severity. Among these were Category A films, which are considered the most serious, depicting children being sexually abused. One such film showed a young boy and girl, both approximately 13 years old, engaged in sexual acts. In addition to these, there were numerous images categorized as B and C, indicating varying degrees of explicit content involving minors.

Jackson's actions extended beyond mere possession. Evidence indicated that he had shared an image with a new member after joining a Snapchat group dedicated to exchanging child abuse material. Mrs. Yeo explained that Jackson was asked to share a particular image to test his trustworthiness within the group, which he did, distributing a Category B image. This act of distribution is a serious offense, highlighting the extent of his involvement in the illicit activity.

At the time of his arrest, Jackson was preparing to begin a computer studies course at Swansea University. However, following his conviction, he was unable to pursue his studies, losing his place at the university. Despite this, Jackson cooperated fully with law enforcement, providing police with his usernames and passwords and admitting that he had viewed these images for sexual gratification and out of curiosity.

During the court proceedings, Jackson, now residing in Llangattock near Crickhowell, Powys, pleaded guilty to three counts of possessing indecent images of children and one count of distributing such an image. His legal representative, Steven Donoghue, urged the court to consider his early guilty pleas, his youth, and the fact that he had no prior criminal record. Mr. Donoghue emphasized the heinous nature of the Category A images, describing them as particularly vile and disgraceful, and pointed out that the images involved real children suffering abuse.

He also noted that Jackson had secured employment after losing his university opportunity, indicating some steps toward rehabilitation. The judge, David Wynn Morgan, sentenced Jackson to a three-year community order. As part of his sentence, Jackson is required to complete 35 sessions of the Horizon sex offender programme, undertake a 30-day rehabilitation activity requirement, and perform 150 hours of unpaid community service. Additionally, he was placed under a five-year sexual harm prevention order, aimed at monitoring and restricting his future conduct to protect the community from further harm.