Lewis Peters, a 31-year-old resident of Worthing, has been sentenced to four years in prison for possession of indecent images of children. Peters was arrested on June 3 at his home following an intelligence-led operation by Sussex Police’s Online Child Abuse Team (OCAT).
During the operation, Peters attempted to conceal a small memory card containing 250 category A indecent images and videos of children. Further investigation revealed his phone also contained 32 Category A images, 74 Category B images, and 12 Category C images. These findings put Peters in breach of a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) issued to him in April 2023.
Appearing before Hove Crown Court on July 5, Peters pleaded guilty to three counts of making an indecent photo of a child, four counts of breaching a SHPO, and possession of extreme pornographic images. On July 16, he was sentenced to four years in prison.
Investigator Maisie Upjohn of Worthing OCAT stated, “Lewis Peters appears to be determined to continue offending despite the SHPO given to him after conviction for other offences in April 2023. Possessing and downloading indecent images of children is an extremely serious offence, reflected in the significant custodial sentence given to him at court. Somewhere in the world there is a poor victim from each of the images and videos that Peters had. This case shows that we will relentlessly pursue offenders to stop them from causing further harm to children.”
