Ryan Ashley Davies

Ryan Ashley Davies, a 24-year-old former Tesco worker from Princess Court in Llanelli, was sentenced at Swansea Crown Court for possessing more than 1,710 indecent images and films, including 594 Category A depictions of children as young as four being raped by men, with another 5,000 uncategorised images. Devices seized included one configured for dark web access, and evidence showed he actively searched for sexual material featuring underage children and shared 77 indecent images on the Kik messenger service with fellow paedophiles. Davies told police he was a 'pornography addict'.

His barrister, Hywel Davies, stated that the young offender was ashamed and remorseful, determined not to let the conviction define his life, though it likely barred him from retail work but opened possibilities in construction. Judge Paul Thomas QC noted the conscious decisions in searching and sharing, linking it to paedophilic interest. Dyfed-Powys Police uncovered the full extent during the search.

The case points to the role of messaging apps in distributing such material among young offenders, exacerbating the trade in child abuse imagery.