Paedophile from Hartlepool spared jail despite admitting to second child porn offence in two years

Peter Blenkinsop, 62, from Hartlepool, breached a 12-month suspended jail sentence when police monitoring his behaviour for life found four indecent images of children on his iPad

A judge at Teesside Crown Court who sent him on a sex offender's programme in 2016 was told that he was given only part of it.

Judge Sean Morris said that he would take an exceptional course with Blenkinsop and would not activate the suspended sentence.

The judge told him:"You would be out in six months with nothing.

"I just think that there is work that can be done."

Blenkinsop was caught with the Category C images, the lowest in seriousness, when police visited his home acting under the lifetime Sexual Offence's Treatment Programme.

Prosecutor Jenny Haigh said that one of the images featured a five year old girl.

David Lamb, defending, said: "He realises that he has a serious problem."

The judge told Blenkinsop: "I nearly always activate suspended sentences.

"I have to consider whether it is in the interests of justice not to activate that today.

"You were given the suspended sentence with a requirement to attend a Sex Offender's Treatment Programme, and some work was done with you on one-to-one sessions but it was not the programme that I intended.

"You then looked at four pictures which are on the lowest level of seriousness, and on the guidelines on their own they would not cross the custodial threshold."

Blenkinsop, of York Road, Hartlepool, was given a three-year community order and an accredited programme for sex offenders with 30 days activity requirements after he pleaded guilty to making indecent images of children.