A REPEAT child sex offender from Worcester who had thousands of indecent images of babies and children being abused has walked free yet again.

Cliff Butler, of Primrose Crescent, St Peter’s, Worcester had more than 800 indecent images of children in category A alone, which shows the worst kind of sexual abuse including rape, and over 2,000 images in total.

However, he walked free with a community order and a curfew when he appeared before Judge Martin Jackson at Hereford Crown Court on Tuesday.

The 46-year-old admitted three charges of making indecent images when he appeared before magistrates in Worcester last month, as previously reported.

He admitted making 2,046 indecent images and films. Butler downloaded the images between January 21, 2019 and January 21, 2021 - and he had done the same thing before. Dressed in grey jogging bottoms and wearing a Covid mask exemption lanyard when he appeared before magistrates, he was asked to enter his pleas, telling the court: “Guilty, yeah, yeah.”

Aleigha Adams, prosecuting the case at magistrates court, said the images included children ‘as young as 12 months old to 15 years old, some of which showed children in discernible pain and distress’.

She also told the court that Butler had a previous conviction for a ‘like offence’ and breach of notification requirements for a sexual harm prevention order. This is an order put in place to protect children, placing controls on an offender’s use of the internet and restricting their contact with young people.

Barry Newton, defending, said Butler had previously been on the sex offender register for an offence in 2011 when he received a community order which had since expired. “He’s no longer on the register. His conviction today means you should order him to register” said the city solicitor.

Magistrates ordered him to ‘re-register’ at the police station as soon as he left magistrates court. Judge Jackson made a sexual harm prevention order for five years and placed Butler on the sex offender register for five years when Butler appeared before him at Hereford Crown Court.

He also ordered the forfeiture of the Samsung mobile phone which contained the images. Butler was placed on a three year community order and ordered to complete 35 rehabilitation activity requirement days.

Butler was also placed on a three month curfew between 7pm and 7am, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £95 and prosecution costs of £340.