A man who imagined being a teacher and shared fantasies of what he would like to do to children has been given a lengthy court order.
Gareth Whinney was sentenced at Suffolk Magistrates' Court on Tuesday, September 15, after admitting two counts of making indecent images of children and one of distributing an indecent image.
Police went to Whinney's home on May 22 last year after a referral from the National Crime Agency's internet child abuse investigation scheme.
When officers examined his electronic devices, they found four indecent videos of children.
These comprised one Category B video and three Category C videos. In the classification system used by the courts, Category A imagery is considered the most serious, followed by Categories B and C.
Investigators also uncovered conversations between Whinney and another user on the Telegram messaging app.
In messages exchanged between July 2024 and May 2025, the pair described sexual acts they would carry out on children if they were teachers.
Whinney, who used the username "Firestarter", shared a Category C video with the other user, the court heard. Prosecutors said he described the material as "hard to find" and acknowledged that the children shown were under 18.
The court also heard that the children in the images found on Whinney's devices were aged between 12 and 16.
Sentencing Whinney, of Quantrill Terrace, Kesgrave, magistrates imposed an 18-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months. They also made a Sexual Harm Prevention Order lasting seven years which places limits on his online activity.
Whinney must also complete up to 15 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days and pay a £187 victim surcharge.
What does ‘making’ indecent images mean?
According to the Crown Prosecution Service, the word “making” can be interpreted in a variety of ways by courts.
Meanings include, but are not limited to, opening an email attachment, downloading an image, and accessing a pornographic website in which indecent images appear by way of a 'pop-up'.
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