Armando Becci, aged 23, was arrested by Nottinghamshire Police after intelligence was received about his online activities.
Officers seized his mobile phones and found several hundred videos and photos showing the sexual abuse of babies and young children.
Most of the videos were graded as category A – a rating used to describe the most serious acts of sexual violence that can be committed by adults against children.
Also found on Becci’s devices were thousands of social media chats where he and others role-played and fantasized about the sexual abuse of children.
Becci, of Worksop, was arrested in March last year and initially answered “no comment” to all the questions put to him by detectives.
He later pleaded guilty to possession of and distribution of indecent images.
Appearing at Nottingham Crown Court on Wednesday, he was given a two year prison sentence suspended for 48 months. He was also instructed to undergo a rehabilitation period.
Detective Constable Keeley Bringhurst, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “Becci’s phone contained some of the most disturbing and upsetting material we have seen in a very long time.
“Behind every one of these depraved images and videos are real children who must live with the physical and emotional scars of what has happened to them.
“Every time someone like Becci views or downloads this kind of material they are directly fuelling this cruel and sadistic abuse, which is why we work so hard to hold each and every one of them to account.
“These really were horrifying images and I hope this case serves as a warning to others about the potential consequences of viewing this material.”
