David Renshaw 64

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A vicar found with more than 20,000 indecent images of children on his computer has been convicted in court.

David Renshaw was found guilty of eight counts after a trial at Hove Crown Court on Tuesday, February 7th.

These included three counts of possessing indecent images of children, three counts of making indecent images of children, three counts of possessing prohibited images of children, and three counts of possessing extreme pornographic images depicting acts of intercourse with animals, specifically dogs and horses.

The 63-year-old, of Wallace Avenue, Worthing, was arrested in June 2019 after an illegal image was discovered on a file-sharing website in New Zealand.

Because the account was linked to Renshaw via his email address and IP address, officials notified the National Crime Agency, who notified Sussex Police.

After obtaining and executing a search warrant at his residence in August 2020, police seized a number of devices. There were a total of 22,504 illegal images discovered.

The RSPCA also seized several dogs, cats, and chickens that were severely malnourished.

Renshaw, the vicar of Holy Trinity and Christ Church in Worthing, was arrested and charged with the offences, which he vigorously denied.

The Crown Prosecution Service authorised the charges, which followed an intelligence-led investigation by the Sussex Police Paedophile Online Investigation Team (POLIT).

Renshaw was found guilty on all eight counts by a jury at Hove Crown Court, where he was tried. He has been released on bail until his sentencing on March 13th.

“Throughout this investigation, Renshaw has sought to blame everyone but himself,” said the investigating officer, Detective Sergeant David Rose. He has refused to accept or accept responsibility for his actions, which I am sure would outrage the local parish he represented.

“Through painstaking and careful enquiries, we were able to show that the child abuse images were on his computer, saved under his username and found on a hard drive on his desk. The sheer number of images suggests that they were amassed over a long period of time.

“The search for his address was one of the most revolting tasks our officers have ever had to endure. Aside from malnourished living animals, there was a dead rotting kitten and a dead rotting rat on the floor, as well as used needles and other drug paraphernalia. The search was an extremely unpleasant scene.

“It was also a particularly harrowing experience for the officer who had to sift through and grade each image, something that will stay with him for the rest of his life.

“I am grateful to our partner agencies for their support, and to the Diocese of Chichester for their full co-operation throughout the investigation.

“All necessary safeguarding investigations were conducted, and no identifiable children were at risk in this case.”