A CALDICOT man who boasted in an internet chat room that he had been spying on a young girl and taking indecent images of her has been jailed for 16 months.

Kevin Williams, 44, formerly of Cirencester, Gloucestershire, but now of Blackbird Road, Caldicot, had spied on a girl, removing her clothing so he could take photographs of her breasts, Gloucester Crown Court was told today.

When police arrested him after they had been alerted to his chat room comments they found indecent images of children on his computer, said prosecutor Janine Wood.

He was bailed by police and then went missing – later being found in London where he was threatening to kill himself.

Williams admitted two offences of sexual assault on the teenage girl by touching her.

He also admitted eight further offences of taking and making indecent images of children.

Judge Michael Cullum sentenced him to 16 months in jail for the assault offences and four months concurrently for making and taking indecent images.

The judge said the case was too serious for anything other than an immediate custodial term. He made a 10-year sexual harm prevention order against Williams and told him he would have to sign the sex offender register for 10 years.

The judge also ordered the confiscation and destruction of Williams’ computer equipment.

Mrs Wood told the court that police in Norfolk informed Gloucestershire police on January 7 this year that Williams, using the name Ciren, had stated in a chat room that he had watched a girl of 11.

Police went straight to his Cirencester home, arrested him and seized his computer equipment.

On January 12 he went missing and was found in London making suicide threats. Mrs Wood said 733,000 images were found on Williams’ computer and police checked a sample of 17,000. Of those, two were the most serious type of child porn at category A, six at Category B and 142 at Category C. When interviewed by police about the offences Williams made no comment.

The victim of his assault offences had suffered ‘psychological trauma,’ she said.

Clare Fear, defending, said he was remorseful and had shown insight into the effect of his crimes.

She submitted that he was suitable for counselling and a sex offender programme coupled with a suspended sentence.

But Judge Cullum said there had to be an immediate prison sentence for such serious offences against the girl.