Description
A registered sex offender has been jailed for breaching an order after he was found in possession of extreme pornography.
Michael Sutherland, aged 31, of no-fixed address, was handed a two-year prison sentence at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court on Tuesday (24 June) after admitting breaching his Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) three times between December 2020 and January 2022.
The order prohibited Sutherland from deleting his internet usage and using any software which does not record internet history.
There were a total of three images and two moving images of extreme pornography found on his device.
Sutherland had previously been convicted in December 2017 for sexual grooming and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and was jailed for 20 months. As part of this conviction, he was placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register for ten years and made the subject of a SHPO for the same period.
Officers from our sex offender management unit seized his phone in December 2022 and it was sent for forensic examination. Following this, alongside the pornography, we spotted that Sutherland had deleted hundreds of messages from Facebook and instant messenger. He had also accessed Snapchat. Officers also found an encryption app on the device.
Following Sutherland’s sentencing, PC Kate Callaghan of our sex offenders management unit, said: “Sutherland knew his activities were in clear breach of his order and acknowledged this in interview.
“I am pleased he admitted his offending in court and was handed a custodial sentence.
“Officers continue to work tirelessly to monitor and assess those convicted of sexual crimes to ensure we do all we can to prevent re-offending and protect the public from harm.”