A 19-year-old from Takeley has been spared jail despite being caught with indecent child and animal images on his computer.

Judge Patricia Lynch said curiosity got the better of Thomas Ogilvie, of Parsonage Road, as she imposed a three-year community order, with three years’ probation on him at Chelmsford Crown Court on Friday (August 28).

Prior to sentencing, Ogilvie pleaded guilty to two counts of making, or downloading, indecent images and a further charge of possessing an extreme pornographic image concerning an animal on or before January 8, 2014.

Prosecutor Richard Potts said police went to Ogilvie’s home on January 8 last year having received information that an internet connection at that address was used to access indecent images of children.

Officers found on his computer a total of 14 still images at the highest category A and 32 movies; 40 still and 12 movies at B; and 54 still and nine movies at C. There were two extreme movies.

Mitigating, Archie Mackay said Ogilvie was a teenager trying to understand his sexuality. “It’s crossed unfortunately into this phase of criminality.”

Judge Lynch said: “People like yourself who look at these websites out of curiosity don’t seem to realise or understand as you are sating your curiosity that what you are looking at are real children, real children being sexually abused.

“If it crosses your mind to look at this material again, imagine it was a child of yours, or a sister or someone who you love.

“People who watch these images perpetuate the sexual abuse and exploitation of young children who should never be sexually abused or exploited and just because you watch it on a screen doesn’t mean it’s not happening.”

Ogilvie was also ordered to attend an internet sex offenders’ treatment programme and was given a five-year sexual harm prevention order as well as paying £200 costs.