A paedophile who took and shared indecent pictures of a child has been jailed.

James Smith, from Dartford, was sentenced for three years and eight months at Woolwich Crown Court yesterday after pleading guilty to a number of sexual offence charges in October.

They include taking and making indecent photos of a child, two counts of making indecent photos of children, distributing indecent photos of a child and publishing an obscene article.

The 34-year-old was arrested on Wednesday, September 18 after officers from the Paedophile Online Investigation Team carried out a search warrant at his home.

He was questioned over the material and associated chat online and broke down in tears. His phone and other electrical devices were analysed by detectives.

Officers found out six of the pictures Smith had taken were shared on social media and he had also engaged in sexual discussion about the images online.

He was also found in possession of a Category A image - the most serious level.

"Children are safer as a results of his jail sentence..." DC Jon Baker

Investigating officer, DC Jon Baker, said: "Indecent material like this, whether taken by an individual or downloaded from online chat rooms or websites, will have resulted from real children suffering appalling abuse.

"Thankfully Smith has been imprisoned for his actions and I would like to thank my team for ensuring he was brought to justice quickly.

"Children are safer as a results of his jail sentence and I want to assure the public that the Paedophile Online Investigation Team will continue to respond quickly and appropriately to reports of child sexual exploitation in order to make Kent a safer place for the young and vulnerable."

An NSPCC spokesman added: "Smith has not only helped to fuel this vile online trade, but behind each of these photos a vulnerable child has been horrifically abused.

“This case highlights that more needs to be done to ensure that this material is cut off at its source, and to prevent it being shared by vile individuals like Smith.”

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