Swansea Crown Court (Image: Leighton Collins / Alamy)
Last Updated: 2 minutes ago
A convicted child rapist who relocated to rural Wales and attempted to build a new life was found with sickening images of children on his phone after his online activity was flagged by the National Crime Agency.
Wayne Evans, 59, of Pentrecourt Road, Llandysul, Carmarthenshire, is a registered sex offender who was handed a 15-year prison sentence for raping and sexually assaulting a child. He moved to west Wales in 2023 and was being managed in the community.
Swansea Crown Court heard how his offending came to light and the sentence he received.
Flagged by the NCA
In January last year, the National Crime Agency alerted Dyfed-Powys Police to a Kik messaging app account involved in downloading indecent images of children. The email address linked to that account was already known to officers – it belonged to Evans.
Police attended his home on January 28 and arrested him. Evans told officers: “I didn’t download the images. They were on a Kik group I was part of. It’s now been shut down.”
Six devices were seized and Evans provided the pin codes for his phones and tablets. He then gave “no comment” responses throughout his police interview and was released under investigation while the devices were forensically examined.
What was found
Analysis of Evans’ Samsung Galaxy phone uncovered 13 Category A images – depicting the most serious forms of child rape and sexual abuse – along with eight Category B and two Category C images. The children shown in the pictures and videos ranged from four to 12 years old.
Previous offending
Evans has six previous convictions spanning 23 offences. In 1990 he was convicted of gross indecency with a child and indecent assault of a child. In 2002 he received a 15-year prison sentence for rape of a child under 16, attempted rape, gross indecency, and five counts of indecent assault. He was placed on the sex offenders register for life and released from prison in 2011.
Defence arguments
Evans had previously pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children across Categories A, B, and C.
Emily Bennett, defending, said Evans realised the court would view his offending “in the dimmest of lights”. She told the court her client had moved to a rural part of Wales where he “keeps himself to himself” and has “taken steps to minimise his contact with females”.
The barrister said Evans “accepts that he still has an inappropriate attraction to children” and that he was in a long-term stable relationship with a partner who was aware of his offending history.
Sentencing
Recorder Mark Powell KC said he accepted Evans had taken steps to try to turn his life around but said it was clear he still had a sexual interest in children, adding that his priority was to pass a sentence which reduced the risk Evans poses.
The recorder said the reality was that any immediate custodial sentence available under the guidelines would see Evans serving only a relatively short period behind bars, which would be destabilising and could actually increase the risk he poses.
With a one-third discount for his guilty pleas, Evans was sentenced to 16 months in prison suspended for 18 months. He was also ordered to complete a rehabilitation course, a building choices programme, and 100 hours of unpaid work. A 10-year sexual harm prevention order was imposed and Evans will remain on the sex offenders register for life.
