02 May 2023 , 10:25
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A convicted flasher accidentally sent compact discs containing sick child abuse images to a man buying phones on eBay.
The "unfortunate" receiver of the package from Michael Mason discovered the sickening images when he put the discs in his computer.
Michael Williams, prosecuting, told Birmingham Crown Court: "The offences came to light on March 9, 2020 when a gentleman who had purchased cordless mobile phones had them delivered to his home address.
"There were not only cordless phones but two compact discs.
"Thinking they may be user manuals for phones he put them into his computer and found indecent images of children. He immediately reported the matter to the police.
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"The defendant's name and home address were recorded as the sender of the items."
Mr Williams said when police searched Mason's address in Moseley, Birmingham, they recovered a Dell computer which also contained child sex abuse pictures, Birmingham Live reports.
The images sent in the package, he said, had involved children aged between four and 16.
Mr Williams said Mason had three previous convictions for exposure, the last in 2017.
Mason, 67, had previously admitted three charges of distributing indecent images and three of possessing them.
He was handed a three-year community order.
Passing sentence, Judge Melbourne Inman KC told him it was an "unusual" case and went on: "It involved you sending two compact discs by mistake to somebody to whom you had sent six second-hand phones which had been purchased on eBay.
"The prosecution accept you had not intended to distribute the two discs to the person buying the phones."
The judge said he also accepted that Mason had not viewed the images on his computer for a number of years and there were a modest number of photos.
Omar Majid, defending, said "Following his exposure conviction in 2017 he resolved to change his ways and he did. The images on the disc are from 2012 and 2013.
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"He would have destroyed the discs if he had remembered he had the images on them."
Mr Majid said Mason had significant caring duties for his mother who was aged 101 and since 1982 he had run a business selling snacks and other food to pubs.