A PERVERT who photographed himself sexually abusing a boy has been jailed for five and a half years.

Paul Malone, 63, sat in the dock at Bradford Crown Court with his head in his hands when he was brought from the cells to be sentenced.

Malone, of Lilythorne Avenue, Idle, Bradford, was arrested on June 15 when the police, acting on intelligence, searched his home and found hundreds of indecent photos, many at category A, the most serious examples of abuse.

Prosecutor Nick Askins said that Malone had taken a photo of himself sexually abusing a boy. Two other pictures showed the child’s exposed private parts with an adult hand holding down his clothing.

Also found at Malone’s address were 185 Category A indecent photos of children, 120 at Category B and 356 at Category C.

The images included 13 film clips.

Malone made no comment to the police but pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting the boy, making three indecent photos of the child and three offences of possession of indecent photos of children.

The judge, Recorder Tahir Khan QC, agreed to the forfeiture of Malone’s phone and laptop computer.

He made a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and told Malone to sign on the sex offender register.

Both orders were without limit of time.

Malone’s barrister, Andrea Parnham, said he was of previous good character.

He was a married man who suffered from diabetes and had failing eyesight, and his mother needed daily care.

Malone was regretful and remorseful about what he had done.

Recorder Khan said that Malone pleaded guilty to the offences at the first opportunity and was a man of good character.

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But he had been “less than honest” with his probation officer, not accepting that the offences showed “an improper and unhealthy interest in children.”

Malone was locked up for four years for sexually abusing the boy and for 18 months, to run consecutively, for hoarding the indecent images of children.