MAN JAILED FOR CHILD SEXUAL OFFENCES
A manager at a mobile phone shop who clandestinely collected videos and images of children from customer devices for sexual gratification has been sentenced to prison.Steven Drew, age 38, residing on Newstead Way in Loughborough, Leicestershire, appeared in Lincoln Crown Court on 23 March, where he was sentenced to seven years in prison.
Additionally, he will serve a further two years on licence for charges including sexual assault of a girl under 13, five counts of possessing indecent images of children, three counts of creating such images, possession of prohibited and extreme images, two counts of voyeurism, possession of a paedophile manual, and making a computer perform functions to gain unauthorised access.
The investigation began in 2022 when Lincolnshire Police were alerted that a user on the file-sharing website Emule was offering indecent images of children.
A search warrant executed on 11 January 2023 at a Lincolnshire property led to Drew’s arrest two days later, as he was living and working locally.
Digital devices seized from him revealed thousands of images, including Category A-C, prohibited, and extreme images, some dating back to 2007.
Further examination uncovered that Drew exploited his role as a shop manager to obtain images and videos from customers’ devices when they brought them in.
He was subsequently re-arrested on 8 January 2024 on suspicion of possessing indecent images, taking such images, and voyeurism, and was released on bail under conditions including no contact with minors.
Additional evidence on his phone indicated that Drew had sexually assaulted a girl under 13 prior to the latest arrest.
During his bail period, the Paedophile Online Investigation Team (POLIT) collaborated with victim support units to identify and protect victims.
Drew was arrested a third time in June 2025 on suspicion of 14 offences and placed in custody, with investigations revealing he continued taking indecent images during bail.
He pleaded guilty to 17 charges at Lincoln Crown Court on 30 October and remained in custody until his next court date.
He has been registered as a sex offender for life and issued a lifetime Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).
