A CONVICTED sex offender downloaded prohibited images of children and bestiality videos just three months after he received a suspended sentence for similar offences.

But Anthony Munk was spared an immediate jail sentence at Swindon Crown Court on Monday after a judge heard the 32-year-old suffered from learning disabilities, it had been more than two years since the offence was committed and he’d stayed out of trouble since then.

Prosecutor Stephen Dent said Munk was given a six month prison sentence suspended for a year-and-a-half at Salisbury Crown Court in March 2018 for possession of indecent images of children.

As a result of that he’d been given a sexual harm prevention order with prohibitions including a ban on him owning internet-enable devices unless allowed to do so by the police.

His offender manager – a specialist police officer – went to his home in October 2018 for a routine visit.

Found during that visit was an Apple iPhone that Munk had failed to register with the police.

When his devices were analysed, police found 15 new prohibited images of children and half a dozen extreme pornographic images showing people having sex with horses and dogs. They had been downloaded in June, just three months after he was given the earlier court order.

Officers also found a number of other illegal images and Munk was originally charged with their possession. However, it was later discovered that those images were ones previously found in his possession – and for which he’d been sentenced in March 2018 – with his phone automatically downloading them from the Cloud.

Wiltshire Times:

Anthony Munk outside Swindon Crown Court on Monday

Munk, of Trowbridge, pleaded guilty to breaching his sexual harm prevention order and possession of prohibited images and extreme pornography.

Ray Tully, mitigating, said a psychologist’s report commissioned this year had uncovered his client suffered from a number of learning difficulties and mental health issues, including autism, ADHD dyslexia and dyspraxia.

The lawyer suggested Munk had potentially been “set up for something of a failure” by the court that sentenced him in 2018. “That is because the court at the point when he, appearing before it as a first-time offender back in March 2018, sentenced him without the full knowledge this court now has as to the complexities of his background.” He added: “In one way, the court went from nought to 60 back in 2018.”

Mr Tully noted the delay in the case coming before the court for sentence. In that time, Munk had not reoffended. He asked the judge not to activate the suspended sentence and instead keep his client in the community. He had completed the requirements of his 2018 suspended sentence order.

Noting Munk’s learning difficulties, the fact he was deemed a low risk by the probation service and he had not come to the attention of police again, Judge Jason Taylor QC imposed a 10 month prison sentenced suspended for two years. He must complete 200 hours of unpaid work and up to 45 rehabilitation activity requirement days.

A 10 year sexual harm prevention order was imposed, with Munk placed on the sex offender’s register for the same period of time.