Met officer who uploaded child abuse videos avoids prison
Updated: 12:03 GMT, 31 October 2024
A former Metropolitan Police officer who confessed to uploading child abuse images of young girls while at work has dodged prison.
Stuart Mason, 50, pleaded guilty to six offences of uploading the most serious child pornography - Category A - of videos of girls as young as eight.
The cop, who had been addicted to porn since 2019 and joined Sexaholics Anonymous, uploaded some of the images from his workplace, the court heard.
Mason, who worked in the Violent Crime Task Force, quit the Met after his arrest in January 2023.
He has since walked free after being handed a two-year suspended prison sentence.
Prosecuting, Christina Rowberry, said Sussex Police tracked down Mason after they were alerted by the National Crime Agency.
'NCA obtained information in December 2022 that indecent images and videos were being uploaded from a Kik messaging account.
'The phone number and email address linked to defendant.'
The images and video were uploaded in a 24-hour period from his family home and from his police station using his personal mobile phone in November 2022.
Ms Rowberry said the distress of a child in one of the uploads and his status as a serving police officer showed how his conduct had betrayed public trust in the police.
'The Met were updated and he was suspended on date of arrest. Disciplinary proceedings followed,' Ms Rowberry said.
Campaspe Lloyd Jacob, defending Mason, told the Crown Court in Hove the husband and father was absolutely devastated by what he had done.
'He can quite understand the full grounds,' she said. 'He has had a long career in work but everything in his life is now destroyed.'
Ms Lloyd Jacob said Mason had been promoted beyond his capabilities and struggled when he lost a significant case.