A Newport teenager has been sentenced after police discovered over 300 child abuse and animal pornography films and photos on his computer. 🖥️
Alan Mohammed, 18, from Newport, was arrested after Gwent Police raided his home on Maesglas Crescent last March, Newport Crown Court heard.
Prosecutor Tabitha Walker read out a prepared statement Mohammed gave to detectives: “I wish to offer the following in mitigation. I’ve grown up in an extremely strict family. I felt that my parents had not really wished for me and I was born as an accident. When I was young I was home alone a lot and had to cater for myself. This in turn made me extremely introverted. Moving to the UK in 2021 exacerbated the situation as I did not have any friends.”
The court heard that the unemployed Mohammed was born in Poland and is in a “long distance relationship with an older woman” from the country.
In his statement, Mohammed admitted becoming “addicted to pornography” from a young age but claimed he had stopped watching child abuse material following his arrest.
Mohammed pleaded guilty to making 251 category A indecent images of children – the most serious kind – 52 at category B and 16 at category C. He also admitted possession of six extreme pornographic images of a person performing an act of intercourse with a live or dead animal and possession of 41 prohibited images of a child.
The offences occurred between December 24, 2022 and February 14, 2024. Mohammed had no previous convictions.
Defence barrister Sol Hartley said: “He has already moved on from offending and he has good prospects of rehabilitation. The defendant is a very timid young man and he would not cope well in custody.”
Judge Celia Hughes told Mohammed: “You must understand that just by watching this material online, more children’s lives are being destroyed. It is not a victimless crime. People are making money out of their misery.”
The defendant was sentenced to 30 weeks in a young offender institution, suspended for 12 months. He must attend 26 sessions of an accredited programme and complete 100 hours of unpaid work.
Mohammed will register as a sex offender for seven years and is subject to a five-year sexual harm prevention order. He must pay £200 towards prosecution costs plus a victim surcharge.
