Horsham Man Jailed for Sending £46k to Philippines for Child Abuse Images
A 65-year-old Horsham man has been locked up for nearly five years after he funnelled tens of thousands of pounds to the Philippines in exchange for horrifying indecent images of children.
Laurence Harvey’s Decade of Sickening Crimes
Laurence Harvey, from Searles View, was caught after officers seized devices loaded with explicit images and chats during a May 2022 raid.
Between September 2011 and August 2021, Harvey sent an eye-watering £46,467 to individuals tied to child sexual exploitation. He repeatedly communicated directly with children, coercing them into sexual acts. In one chilling case, he paid a woman who supplied images of a child she claimed was her daughter.
Harvey’s Lies Crumble Under Weight of Evidence
Despite claiming the money was for charities or adult online activities, Harvey’s deceit was exposed. He pleaded guilty to multiple offences, including:
- Arranging a child sex offence
- Possession and making indecent images of children
- Arranging sexual exploitation of a child under 13
Justice Served with Prison and Harsh Restrictions
On August 6, Lewes Crown Court sentenced Harvey to 56 months behind bars. He also received a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order restricting his internet use, digital devices, and travel to the Philippines.
“Laurence Harvey is an online predator, who sought out children and vulnerable people to exploit in the most appalling ways,” said Detective Sergeant David Rose. “The vast sums of money he was willing to spend over a ten-year period point to a committed offender, who showed no regard for the devastating impact of his crimes on these innocent children and their families.”
“Thanks to the Online Child Abuse Team’s hard work, we’ve brought a dangerous individual to justice and put him behind bars where he can cause no further harm.”
