A police inspector has been sacked for gross misconduct after officers found he was making and sharing sick videos and images of children online.

Chief Constable Alan Pughsley dismissed Inspector Timothy Ryton following a hearing at Kent Police headquarters in Maidstone today.

Ryton, formerly of Folkestone, will be sentenced at Lewes Crown Court later this month after admitting nine criminal charges in Crawley in March.

He was discovered when detectives from Greater Manchester Police alerted Kent Police about information they had received from an investigation focusing on Stockport in Cheshire.

The hearing was told Ryton – a supervisory officer with more than 25 years service – had used two internet addresses in Kent – one from a Sky TV account at an address in Kent and the other was an IP address “belonging to Kent Police”.

It has not been revealed whether he was sharing the material when he accessed the account at work.

Under the username HubbaBubba71, Ryton posted sexual images and videos he had made of young girls.

Det Supt John McDermott, who led the investigation for the Kent Police professional standards department, gave examples of the kind of material Ryton had been sharing which included sexual abuse of young girls.

Det Supt McDermott told the hearing that footage deleted from Ryton’s mobile phone and recovered by investigators was “exactly the same” as the material posted online.

He said: “He remained silent throughout his formal interview. Mr Ryton has declined to provide a reason neither does he intend to appear before today’s hearing.

“Police security access show he was not at work when the account was connected from his home address.

“But he was at work when HubbaBubba71 was connected to the Kent Police wifi account.”

Data recovered during the investigation showed Ryton, who worked at the force control room at police headquarters in Maidstone, had also logged in to the account from London, Paris, Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City and Rome.

He was arrested in January and suspended from duty as a police officer immediately.

Det Supt McDermott said: “Following his arrest he was released with a number of bail conditions. One was not being in possession of a mobile phone capable of accessing the internet.

“His father contacted Kent Police and said he was in possession of a mobile phone which his father suspected was in breach of his bail conditions.”

Officers carried out a search of a property in Essex and Ryton denied he had a phone but it was discovered hidden under a window ledge, which Det Supt McDermott described as “further incontrovertible evidence of the breach of his professional standards”.

Chief constable Alan Pughsley said: “I note he’s offered no explanation throughout this investigation.

“I have listened carefully to the evidence provided today and read in detail. At the higher level of proof beyond reasonable doubt Mr Ryton is guilty of all the offences of poor behaviour put before me today.

“I am convinced he is HubbaBubba71 and he shared appaling and indecent material of young children, maybe the most vulnerable in our society.

“His behaviour is both criminal and way below what is expected to be professional standards of behaviour.

“His disregard for complying with bail conditions is disrespectful. It’s utterly appalling.

“There’s simply only one finding for a serving supervisory officer and that is of course one of gross misconduct. This is my finding.

“I’m deeply disappointed that a person such as Mr Ryton was serving in Kent Police as one of my officers he has behaved in a way described here today is deeply disturbing and shocking.

“His role is to protect and serve to keep communities safe and safeguard the most vulnerable.

“We are here to protect children who are abused in this way not be complicit and part of the problem. I find these actions simply appalling.

“The public most importantly and his colleagues have no trust in this man. He can serve no longer in public officer as a police officer.

“My decision is to dismiss him without notice. Mr Ryton is no longer a member of Kent Police.

“Difficult, disappointing and upsetting it may be but it’s the right thing to do.”

Kent Police’s head of professional standards, Lee Catling said: “Kent Police expects the highest standards of its officers and staff, who are expected to serve with the utmost integrity and professionalism. Any employee whose behaviour is suspected of falling below these standards will be subject to scrutiny.

“We have over 5,800 employees at Kent Police. The vast majority serve with honesty, integrity and professionalism. The very small minority who do not reach the high standards expected of them will be identified and brought before a disciplinary panel or court if their actions are of a criminal nature.

“Officers or staff suspected of committing a criminal offence are subject to the same robust investigation as any member of the public, and will also face disciplinary procedures by the force. Kent Police also acts on intelligence received from outside of the force that relates to any wrong-doing from our officers and staff.”