Description
Illegal child images were found on the phone of a registered sex offender when police made a surprise visit to his Edenbridge home.
David Johnson was arrested after officers were alerted by monitoring software which had been installed on his phone.
Johnson had been the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), following previous convictions in 2021 relating to the access of indecent images.
The SHPO contained a raft of measures to deter him from reoffending.
These included Johnson being prohibited from using any device capable of accessing the internet unless it had been installed with a web monitoring program.
He also had to inform police of any devices he possessed and allow these to be inspected.
Software alert
On 9 January 2025, officers received an alert linked to suspicious activity on one of his phones.
Days later they made an unannounced visit to Johnsons home near Main Road, Edenbridge.
A review of the camera roll on a phone led to the recovery of several images showing a very young child who was naked.
Johnson was arrested and searches of the property led to the discovery of internet enabled devices which he hadnt told police about, including a tablet and a television.
The investigation led to evidence of further SHPO breaches, after alias names he used for websites were identified, including ford19656 and slimguy1965.
He was charged with making indecent images of children, two counts of breaching a SHPO and a further four counts of failing to comply with sex offender notification requirements.
Guilty
Johnson, 60, pleaded guilty and on Monday 2 July was sentenced at Maidstone Crown Court to four years imprisonment.
Detective Constable Steph Kirkin said:
Sexual Harm Prevention Orders are just one of several tools which help us protect children and other vulnerable people, and which allow us to closely monitor convicted offenders.
'Having been released from prison, David Johnson has demonstrated contempt for the sanctions imposed by the court designed to prevent him from reoffending. He even deleted monitoring software installed on another one of his phones.
Johnson is now facing the consequences of his actions and I hope this case demonstrates just how strictly we manage registered sex offenders. Where we see flagrant breaches and fresh offences committed, we will take robust action.