Paul Hilton, a 62-year-old former children's entertainer from Bicester, Oxfordshire, was sentenced at Oxford Crown Court on Tuesday, November 25, 2024, after pleading guilty to three counts of breaching a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO). The order had been imposed in April 2024 following his earlier conviction for possessing a large quantity of indecent images of children.
The initial breach that led to the SHPO occurred on August 18, 2023, when Hilton was caught by a neighbour viewing child pornography on his parents' living room television in Malvern Close, Banbury. He was charged with six counts of possession of indecent images, including 1,172 Category C images (still and moving), 78 Category A images (the most severe), and 127 Category B images. Additionally, he faced charges for possessing 18 prohibited images of children and three extreme pornographic images. These offences resulted in the imposition of the SHPO to prevent further harm.
Despite the order, Hilton breached it for the third time. In October 2024, police visited his address at Bardwell Terrace, Bicester, after security software on a Lenovo tablet detected him viewing a YouTube video featuring a naked toddler. Further investigation revealed other videos on the device containing naked children aged between six and 15 years old, with evidence that Hilton had paused these videos. He also admitted to downloading and deleting such videos. A search of a storage locker in Banbury uncovered a Dell laptop and computer tower that had not been registered with police as required under the SHPO, and records showed Hilton visited the locker frequently.
During the sentencing hearing, Hilton denied any sexual attraction to children but acknowledged his actions. His mitigating barrister, Gordana Austin, requested an adjournment for a psychiatric report, highlighting Hilton's deep shame, regret, insight into the harm caused, loneliness, excessive online time, possible bipolar disorder, and declining mental health. She noted his motivation to change and fear of dying as a 'hated person'. However, Judge Ian Pringle KC refused the application, stating, 'I'm going to deal with this case today.'
Judge Pringle remarked, 'You fully understood the order because you have already breached it. You clearly have an interest in children, though you deny it. You were targeting young children.' Hilton was sentenced to a total of 18 months' imprisonment. The case was reported by Toby Oliver for This Is Oxfordshire, with the prosecuting authority being Thames Valley Police.