'Low-level' paedophiles could avoid jail terms under new guidance

The Ministry of Justice has said some low risk offenders could be given cautions with tough conditions aimed at rehabilitation.
The Ministry of Justice has said some low risk offenders could be given cautions with tough conditions aimed at rehabilitation Credit: Dominic Lipinski/PA

Police have been told by government that paedophiles caught with indecent child abuse images can receive conditional cautions instead of jail as police struggle to cope with an explosion of cases.

Amid a 700 per cent rise in cases referred to police, the Ministry of Justice said some low-risk offenders could be given cautions with tough conditions aimed at rehabilitation.

The move has been promoted by police chiefs who say they are “overwhelmed” by the surge in cases and claim jail offers no chance of rehabilitation to prevent re-offending.

It comes ahead of Home Secretary Sajid Javid’s showdown with social media bosses in the US next week over the tech giants’ efforts to prevent images getting online in the first place.

Simon Bailey, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) lead on child abuse, welcomed it as an “important step”.

It is backed by Lynne Owens, head of the National Crime Agency (NCA) who is concerned by many “very low” sentences issued by courts and told MPs conditional cautions could enable offenders to be “proactively monitored.”

Charities, however, warned they could allow paedophiles to escape being publicly identified - a key deterrent - because they would not go to court. One said it amounted to a “general amnesty.”

In a statement to The Daily Telegraph, the ministry said: “Child sexual exploitation is sickening, and offenders who take or distribute indecent images already face tough penalties.

“Record numbers got prison sentences in 2017 and the worst perpetrators face 10 years in custody – but, where prosecutors agree, some low risk offenders could also be given cautions with tough conditions attached.

“Conditional cautions can include specific programmes that tackle the causes behind an offender’s behaviour, thus helping reduce reoffending and keeping the public safe.”

Mr Bailey, Norfolk’s chief constable, said only 20pc of those caught with indecent child images were sent to prison where they had “no rehabilitation at all.”

“The remaining 80 per cent are simply being the subject of a suspended sentence, community service or conditional discharge - in effect, no real punishment at all,” he said.

“We are being overwhelmed with the sheer volume and the courts are struggling to cope. A conditional caution would force them to confront their offending and attend rehabilitation.

“They should pay for it themselves, be put on the sex offenders’ register and brought to crown court if they breached the conditions.

“Too much time is being taken up with investigating low-level offences to put before a court when  there is enough evidence for it to be proved and a caution given.

“Conditional cautions would free up court time and give us the opportunity to concentrate on those offenders who present the greatest threat of contact abuse, the groomers and high-end offenders.”

He said the cautions, issued by a senior officer after consulting with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), could require publication of the offender’s name to counter accusations of secret justice - or include publication as a condition.

The Ministry said conditional cautions could only be issued if the offender admitted the offence and accepted the condition. An ordinary caution was unlikely to be suitable.

The NSPCC said: “We recognise the pressure police forces are under and the need for resources that help deal with child sexual abuse image offenders.

“Conditional cautions should only be used if they don’t compromise the safety of children in any way, because if we are to protect more children from sexual abuse we must make prevention and rehabilitation an integral part.”

Peter Saunders, founder of the National Association of People Abused in Childhood (NAPAC), said: “We know that one thing abusers in all their forms do not want and that is to be caught out and identified. This is almost like ushering in a general amnesty.

“I dispute the use of the term 'low level', anyone who looks at these images is buying into the vile trade of child abuse and must pay the full consequences.”

Child sexual offences have jumped in just a year from 15 to 23 a day while the NCA estimates 80,000 paedophiles pose an online threat to children.

The NCA received 82,109 individual industry referrals for child sex abuse images in 2017, a seven-fold rise since 2012.

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