Man jailed for six months for making indecent images of children

A 75-year-old man has been jailed for making indecent images of children - with thousands of images found on his electronic devices. 

Paul Yate, of Main Road, Clenchwarton, appeared at Norwich Crown Court today (Thursday 4 June) where he was sentenced to six months in prison after previously pleading guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children.

He was also made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for ten years and put on the sex offenders' register.

Yate was arrested at home in September 2023 after his IP address - the unique reference code linking an individual account holder to the internet - was linked to images of child sexual abuse.

During Yate's arrest a number of electronic devices were seized from his home which contained almost four and a half thousand indecent images of children ranging from category A (the most serious) to category C.

Yate was charged and initially denied those charges but subsequently entered a guilty plea.

Following sentencing, Detective Constable Paul Atkinson of Norfolk Constabulary's Safeguarding Children Online Team (SCOLT), said: "The extent of Yate's offending was appalling. I hope this sends a clear message that we will seek to prosecute any individual who exploits children online, or those who engage with others who share child sexual abuse material."

"Norfolk Constabulary Safeguarding Children Online Team (SCOLT) work closely with Regional, National and International partners in a constant battle to make the internet a hostile place for individuals who engage in this type of online activity, and to safeguard children from serious sexual abuse and exploitation."