A PAEDOPHILE caught with indecent images of children has been researching a book which addresses hebephilia.

Amri Bhachoo, 47, was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Thursday (November 23) for three counts of possessing indecent images of children.

The images were found on various equipment seized from Bhachoo’s home where police also found a search for the book ‘Lolita’, a 1955 novel written by Russian-American novelist Vladimir Nabokov which addresses hebephilia.

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The term hebephilia has been proposed to denote the erotic preference for pubescent children.

Judge Amjad Nawaz handed the 47-year-old a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for two years.

The court heard that Bhachoo’s address in Westborough Road, Maidenhead was searched on September 29 last year after intelligence revealed an IP address from that location had been used to access indecent images of children.

A Dell laptop, computer, two hard drives, and a blue USB disk were seized and Bhachoo was arrested at about 7.22am that day.

During police interview, Bhachoo stated he had ‘no idea’ why he had been arrested and denied being in possession of indecent images.

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Police found 20 Category A images, one Category B image, and 65 Category C images. There was also ‘file sharing’ software discovered as well as the search term for the ‘Lolita’ novel.

An image of a 10-year-old being abused was also discovered on the equipment.

Bhachoo continued to deny the offences during his first appearances in court but eventually pleaded guilty at a trial preparation hearing at Reading Crown Court.

His case was then adjourned so a pre-sentence report could be prepared.

Defending Bhachoo, his barrister said that the defendant was ‘obviously ashamed’ about what he had done and stated he has been making steps since his arrest to improve himself.

He said: “He had a difficult childhood, which is often the case in these types of offences, and witnessed domestic abuse in a family setting. He lost his employment as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

“And he’s had suicidal thoughts since his arrest.”

His barrister also pointed out that some of the indecent images were ‘anime’ and not real children.

Sentencing, Judge Nawaz said: “You pleaded guilty later, not as early as you could have done, and the impact of that is the reduction that could have been otherwise in this situation is no longer available.”

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He noted Bhachoo had no previous convictions and believed he could be rehabilitated within the community.