A paedophile pensioner has escaped jail after police found more then a thousand pictures of extreme porn and sickening images of child abuse on his laptop.
Philip Sansby, 71, claimed he didn't know the pictures were illegal and had downloaded the images accidentally - even though he went to a top independent school.
Following a tip-off, police raided his home in Hyde in September 2019 and, when officers suggested he had downloaded and shared indecent images of children, Sansby told them: "I downloaded it but I scrubbed it off."
Officers seized his Toshiba laptop and a number of hard drives.
When he voluntarily attended a police station for an interview the following month, he admitted visiting porn websites and also downloading adult porn, prosecutor Nicola Carroll told Minshull Street Crown Court today (Thursday).
However, he denied any sexual interest in children, insisting he had accidentally downloaded indecent images of kids on more than one occasion, the court was told.
Analysis of his laptop revealed two 'category A' indecent images of children aged between 10 and 16 and one 23 minute video featuring an horrific sex act on a child estimated to be between 14 and 16.
The analysis also showed a series of files, which had been emptied of any pictures or videos, with names like 'paedo real kids f******'.
Police found 1,099 images and a small number of videos of extreme pornography on his computer, some of it featuring animals.
Following the discoveries, Sansby went on to make 'full admissions' to police, sad Ms Carroll.
He told officers he didn't know it was illegal to possess such images.
He confessed to visiting 'pre-teen' websites.
Rebecca Penfold, defending, urged the judge not to jail Sansby, insisted he could be managed 'in the community'.
Her client had felt 'isolated' during the pandemic and the 18-months since the police came to his door he said had been 'hell'.
Ms Penfold said Sansby, who has no previous convictions and suffers from diabetes, had relied on alcohol but he had 'apologised for the tragic error he has made'.
He felt 'embarrassed and ashamed'.
Judge John Edwards told the defendant: "These are shocking and sickening images in equal measure... By looking at this material, as you appreciate, you are encouraging the exploitation of children in particular in this most pernicious and damaging trade.
"The market for this material is burgeoning and causes untold stress to the most vulnerable people in our society and causes irreparable harm.
"You went to one of the region's top independent schools. You have worked throughout your life. In my judgement this crosses the threshold for custody, given the extreme nature of the material."
A probation report revealed Sansby had gone to William Hulme's Grammar School.
However, the judge said he was able to suspend the prison sentence after hearing about the 'remorse' of the defendant.
He said he hoped the defendant could get help to 'cure you of this sickness'.
Sansby, of Bradley Green Road in Hyde, was handed a suspended 12-month sentence after he had pleaded guilty to possessing indecent photographs of children and possessing extreme pornography.
He was also ordered to complete 20 days of rehabilitation activity and was placed on the sex offenders' register for ten years.
Sansby was also made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order and was told to pay £510 towards prosecution costs.
