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A bus driver from Derby who was a practising Jehovah’s Witness has lost his job, his marriage and has been disowned by two of his children after being caught with indecent images of children.

Police found almost 300 sick child abuse images and more than 50 indecent movies of children when they analysed devices they seized from Gordon Morris.

Of those, 64 were the most serious category A and detectives also found one extreme pornographic image of a person and an animal engaged in sexual activity, Derby Crown was told.

(Image: Martin Naylor)

Morris, 64, was arrested and admitted fully that he had downloaded and viewed the sick pictures and films telling officers his offending “was like an addiction”.

The images included both girls and boys aged as young as seven but he said he “did not get any sexual gratification” from viewing them.

Now, he has been handed a suspended prison term after pleading guilty to five counts of possessing the indecent images.

David Webster, for Morris, said: “He has lost his job, lost his marriage and he has three children of which two of them have abandoned him.

“He was a practising Jehovah’s Witness but he has since left the church."

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Mr Webster said Morris's wife and the two children who have disowned him continued to abide strictly by their religious beliefs.

He added: “He used to be a bus driver and was an employee who went out of his way to make the passengers travelling on his bus or coach a happy and cheerful experience.

“But what has happened is that he has fallen prey, not to drink or drugs, but to a different human weakness.”

Sam Coe, prosecuting, said police received information that an email address inked to Morris had been involved in sending out an indecent image of a child.

They executed a warrant at his then home in St Giles Road, Normanton, in November last year and seized a mobile phone, a laptop and a number of SIM cards that belonged to him.

Mr Coe said: “In total they uncovered 35 category A images and 29 category A movies; 28 category B images and four movies and 234 category C images and 20 movies.

“There was also a prohibited image and an extreme pornographic image.

“In his interview, he admitted using software to hide his identity online and he described his behaviour as like an addiction.”

Morris, now of Grange Road, Alvaston, admitted possessing the images and was handed a 10-month prison term, suspended for 18 months.

He must also attend 30 different one-to-one sessions with the probation service to work on his offending.

Morris must also carry out 120 hours of unpaid work and he was handed a 10-year sexual harm prevention order.

Judge Jonathan Bennett said: “Real children are being abused and that market exists because people like you, no doubt for hours on your own, indulge their fantasies by downloading and viewing them.

“People will say ‘why hasn’t the judge sent him to prison?’ The reasons for that are you are 64, have no previous convictions, there is a prospect of rehabilitation and the probation service think they can work with you.

“You also pleaded not guilty at the earliest opportunity and made full admissions at the police station.”