A convicted child rapist shared vile materials with a fellow sex offender who he met in prison.
Thomas Stanley struck up a friendship with the other inmate while they were behind bars together before sending him an indecent image over WhatsApp once released. In one sickening message, he even apologised that the child abuse picture was "not of the best quality".
Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday, Thursday, that "information came to light" in December last year that the 33-year-old had been in communication with "known sex offender" Connor Jackson. The two are believed to have met while both men were serving time, the latter being described as "high risk".
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Christopher Hopkins, prosecuting, told the court that Stanley - of Phoenix Brow in St Helens - was then handed a notice "not to have any contact" with this friend under his lifelong sexual harm prevention order (SHPO). Despite this, he went on to send Jackson an indecent image via WhatsApp on March 22 this year.
As a result, police attended the hostel where he was living and seized two USB sticks from him. These devices were found to contain nearly 200 indecent images of children, including 52 pictures and five videos graded as being in category A - those showing the most serious forms of abuse.
Also discovered were 30 stills and one film in category B and 102 pictures and three videos in category C, including the image sent to Jackson. This came around six months after his release from custody.
Stanley was previously imprisoned following convictions for sexual activity with a child in 2008 and rape in 2011. The "danger to children" committed these offences against two young boys.
He was also handed a jail term for breaching his SHPO in 2010. The pervert was described by his counsel as "living a lonely, isolated life" and having had an "extremely disturbing upbringing".
Stanley admitted distributing indecent images, possession of indecent images, three counts of making indecent images and breaching a sexual harm prevention order. Appearing via video link to HMP Altcourse, he was locked up for a further 32 months.
Sentencing, the Honorary Recorder of Liverpool Judge Andrew Menary KC said: "You struck up a friendship with him and the police discovered that you were in contact with this person, who it appears was still in custody. You had in fact sent him an indecent image of a child with an accompanying text from you to him saying, in terms, that it was not of the best quality but you would obtain for him a USB drive tomorrow.
"The reality is, you are someone who has an unhealthy, worrying interest in children and you have not shown a desire to want to change. You undoubtedly represent a significant danger to children."
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