A WORKINGTON man has been put on the Sex Offender Register after he admitted allegations that involved him downloading thousands of child abuse images.

At Carlisle Crown Court, Philip Martin-White, 45, of Patterson Hill Close, Workington, also admitted having extreme pornography.

He entered guilty pleas to five charges, four of which featured indecent images of children.

Those charges were:

  • Distributing an indecent child image classified as Category A (the most serious kind) on November 4, 2021.
  • Downloading 2,605 Category A child abuse images on or before March 17, 2022, at Workington.
  • Downloading 2,143 Category B indecent child images during the same time period.
  • Downloading 283 Category C indecent child images during the same time period.
  • And possessing an extreme pornographic image, depicting sexual activity between a person and a dog.

The defence advocate for Martin-White asked for the case to be adjourned that the Probation Service can prepare a pre-sentence on the defendant, a man of previous good character. Judge

Michael Fanning agreed to this course of action, adjourning sentence until April 26. He told the defendant that his name will now go on to the national Sex Offender Register as a result of the conviction.

How long his name will remain on the register will depend on the sentence that he ultimately receives, added the judge, granting the defendant bail.

The Stop It Now charity is devoted to preventing child abuse and works with any person who has concerns, either about themselves or others. The  charity's confidential helpline number is 0808 1000 900.