Pensioner paedophile caught when he searched for 'Lolita' pornography on his smart TV

A 70-year-old sex offender failed to tell police he had a smart television linked to the internet in breach of a court order designed to monitor his online activities, a court has heard. When officers checked the search history on the telly they found Ian Rimmer had been looking for Lolita-type adult pornography.

A judge at Swansea Crown Court said while the imagery Rimmer had been searching for was not illegal, he had to abide by the terms of the court order he was subject to. He warned the pensioner that the police and courts would continue to keep an eye on his online activities and he said the defendant would be in "serious trouble" were he to search for anything he was not meant to.

The court heard the defendant has a long history of offending involving child sexual abuse images and is subject to a life-long sexual harm prevention order. As part of that order Rimmer has to register any internet-enable device with police and has software installed on his phones and laptop to check his usage.

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Jon Tarrant, prosecuting, said in December 2023 and again in February 2024 police received notifications that Rimmer had been viewing pornography from the "dadcrush" site, a legal adult site. He said on March 26 this year police visited the defendant's home and asked him to handover all his internet-enabled devices for inspection - Rimmer handed over his two phones and a laptop, all three of which police knew about. None of the devices showed any trace of having been used to search for dadcrush.

The court heard police again asked the defendant about any devices he had which were capable of accessing the internet, and he told them about his Samsung smart TV. When the online history of the television was checked officers found it had been "exclusively used to search for sexual material" with searches related to incest and Lolita role playing-type content. The defendant was arrested on suspicion of breaching a sexual harm prevention order. In his subsequent interview Rimmer said he had owned the TV for the last 12 years and accepted he had never told the police about it but said he did not think he had to as it didn't allow easy browsing. He said he had been using the television to access the web for two of three years.

Ian William Rimmer, of Llys Newydd, Llanelli, had previously pleaded guilty to breaching the requirements of a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has six previous convictions for 36 offences between 1976 and 2023 including convictions for making indecent images in 2008, 2010 and 2018 and for breaching a sexual harm prevention order.

Dyfed Thomas, for Rimmer, said it would have been open to the prosecution to bring a charge which covered a date-span but they had chosen not to and so the defendant was to be sentenced on the basis of a breach of the order on the date of his arrest only. He said while the images the defendant had been viewing "were not the kind of images most people would want to see" they were not against the law. He noted that the defendant had pointed-out the TV to the officers, and said the fact that the TV was linked to the internet router would have been visible to officers during their three or four previous house visits.

Recorder Greg Bull KC said he regarded the breach of the SHPO as a "modest breach" and he said he was satisfied it was "oversight" on the part of the defendant. He noted nothing of an illegal nature had been found on any of Rimmer's devices. The recorder told the defendant that for many more years to come the police and courts would be keen to make sure he does not return to his former ways, and he warned him he would be in "serious trouble" if he searched for things online which he was not meant to.

Rimmer was sentenced to a 24-month community order and must complete a Horizon sex offenders programme and a rehabilitation course, and he must do 50 hours of unpaid work in the community. The SHPO remains in force.

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