Baris Gumus, a 22-year-old man from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, has been sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison for breaching court orders and possessing a collection of indecent images depicting child sexual abuse. This marks the third time Gumus has appeared before the courts since 2017 for similar offences involving the downloading of child sex abuse material.
The case was heard at Oxford Crown Court, where Judge Nigel Daly presided. Gumus, who resides on Parsons Mead in Abingdon, had been subject to sexual harm prevention orders imposed in 2017 and 2019 following previous convictions for possessing indecent images. Despite these restrictions, Gumus failed to register a new Dell laptop with his police offender manager, as required under the orders. The device was found to have VPN software installed, which is designed to conceal online activities.
Upon examination by police analysts from Thames Valley Police, the laptop revealed a disturbing cache of material, including indecent images and videos of children, explicit cartoons depicting children, and extreme pornography involving women having sexual intercourse with animals. Further evidence showed that Gumus had been communicating with other paedophiles online; in one conversation, he discussed an image of a child who appeared to have been drugged.
Judge Daly, addressing Gumus who was visibly emotional in the dock, condemned the nature of the material, stating: "I’m dealing with you for breaches of a sexual harm prevention order in a number of different ways relating to a computer and class A [indecent] images of the most disgraceful and disgusting nature which quite clearly when they were made were causing pain, injury to young children, one of them a baby." The judge highlighted the presence of both still and moving images, as well as prohibited cartoons, and noted Gumus's history of non-compliance. He remarked on the aggravating factors, including prior convictions, and the attempt to hide activities using anonymising software, which ultimately failed.
In mitigation, the court was told that Gumus suffers from poor mental health. While on remand at HMP Bullingdon since spring, he had achieved enhanced prisoner status and was working as a qualified barber, cutting hair for fellow inmates. Defence arguments emphasised his youth and desire for rehabilitation support during and after custody. However, Judge Daly found few mitigating factors beyond Gumus's guilty pleas.
Gumus admitted to breaching a suspended sentence order, making indecent images, and possessing prohibited images of children and extreme pornographic images. In addition to the custodial sentence, he was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order for life and will remain on the sex offenders' register indefinitely. The case was reported by This is Oxfordshire, with details emerging from the court proceedings at Oxford Crown Court.