Record details
A horrified home owner was arrested in his own home in front of his wife for offences committed by a paedophile living in his annex. Police were actually after sex offender Peter Quinton, 31, who later suggested to police the homeowner may have had something to do with it.
Quinton, formerly of Bodmin but more recently of Gloucester, appeared at Truro Crown Court for sentence having pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children.
Prosecuting the case, Ryan Murray said that on July 27, 2021, police executed a warrant at an address in Bodmin following intelligence from an online paedophile investigation team that linked the IP address to child pornography being accessed online. Mr Murray described how police initially arrested the property owner before realising Quinton was living in an annex.
Quinton provided devices and on a laptop found five Category A images, one Category B and two Category C. All were stills and depicted children aged between one and seven. Quinton was also found to have made searches relating to child abuse images and made file names relating to toddlers and babies. The homeowner said that had he realised Quinton was a sex offender he'd never have allowed him to live there.
Quinton largely remained quiet during interview but suggested the homeowner may have had something to do with the accessing of the sick material. The court heard how Quinton had been convicted of similar offences in 2015 and given a non-custodial sentence.
Representing Quinton, Nicholas Wragg said that he had been in a stable relationship and stable employment for many years. Mr Wragg added that Quinton suffered abuse as a child which had a "profound effect" on him and also witnessed domestic abuse. All of this is said to have "distorted his thinking later in life". He has also been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) which causes impulsive behaviour.
Sentencing Quinton, Recorder John Trevaskis said it's sadly a fact of life that those who commit crimes involving abuse are often the victims of abuse themselves. He added that as a result Quinton developed an unhealthy interest in sexual activity with children, and although he hadn't actively abused any children himself, the interests of people such as Quinton result in children being raped and abused all over the world.
Recorder Trevaskis said that in Quinton's case there is considerable mitigation, despite his "deeply intrenched and inappropriate interest in indecent images of children". Recorder Trevaskis noted Quinton's family support and that of his wife, and deeming him "a realistic prospect of rehabilitation" sentenced him to a two-year community order, with 300 hours unpaid work and a rehabilitation requirement to address his offending. Quinton was also made subject of a sexual harm prevention order.