Jared Clarke

Jared Clarke, a 29-year-old academic from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, was discovered to have amassed a vast collection of child sexual abuse material on his devices. In the early hours of 7 December 2023, police attended his address on Broad Street and seized two computer towers along with an expansive portable drive. The devices contained a total of 18,223 indecent images of children, categorised as follows: 281 Category A images—the most severe type depicting the worst forms of abuse—532 Category B images, and 17,410 Category C images. These images had been downloaded over a 12-month period leading up to December 2023.

During his police interview, Clarke claimed the images were kept 'for drawing purposes' and insisted, 'I'm no paedophile,' denying any sexual interest in children. He described the material as 'disgusting' and expressed remorse, though his defence later elaborated that his interest stemmed from artistic influences rather than paedophilic tendencies. Clarke, described as a reclusive young man supported by his mother and aspiring game designer, pleaded guilty to three charges of possessing indecent images of children at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.

Prosecutor Tomas Quinn outlined the grim details of the collection to the court, highlighting the exploitative nature of the content. Mitigating, Anis Ali emphasised Clarke's embarrassment and shame, noting his academic background and desire for personal growth. Recorder Rupert Jones, in sentencing, addressed Clarke directly: 'Some of the images were of children as young as five. It was a large collection and there were 281 of the most serious type. This crime is not victimless, each image displays a vulnerable victim, a child who has been abused and exploited by people who seek out such imagery as you did. It seems you have a degree of remorse and your accessing material of this sort became a habit.'

Instead of immediate custody, Clarke was handed an 18-month community order, comprising 20 days of rehabilitation activities and 150 hours of unpaid work. He was also subjected to a six-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order to restrict his access to such material in the future. The case, reported by Stoke-on-Trent Live on 16 December 2025, underscores the ongoing efforts to combat child sexual exploitation in the UK.