One of the largest collections of indecent images of children and a stash of weapons found in bunker under his Harrogate farmhouse
Paedophile Geoffrey Crossland, 70, who possessed more than 2.2 million indecent images of children and a stash of illegal weapons, was jailed for 12 years and eight months today at York Crown Court.
He admitted making the indecent images and 11 firearms charges, six charges of possessing prohibited firearms, two of possessing firearms without the relevant certificate, two of possessing ammunition without the relevant certificate, and one of possessing a shotgun without the relevant certificate.
Crossland, of Padside Green Farm, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, who had previously admitted three counts of making indecent images between January 2011 and October 2018, was being investigated by child abuse officers when they also found guns and ammunition in an underground bunker during a raid on his farmhouse.
The images found at his home – 34,612 of which were in the most extreme category A – were described by the Crown Prosecution Service as one of the largest known collections in England and Wales.
The court heard how officers executed a search warrant of his home and found SD cards, USB sticks, DVDs, SIM cards, floppy disks, laptops, tablets and mobile phones containing the images.
Stephen Wood, prosecuting, said Crossland had “painstakingly categorised” the pictures and some dated as far back as 1988, which implied he had a “longstanding interest in children”.
Judge Andrew Stubbs said the “scale of the depravity” was hard to understand.
“Your criminality was unearthed, almost literally, on October 18 last year, when officers searched your house for images of children,” the judge told him.
“One issue which is not forgotten is that these images capture real life people, and at the same time, real life sexual abuse being carried out on them.”
The “scale of the depravity” that the images depicted was hard for the public to understand, Judge Stubbs added.
Crossland’s underground bunker was fitted with a shooting range and an area designed for the manufacture of ammunition. An “arsenal of weapons” was discovered and about 24,000 rounds of ammunition.
The court heard Crossland’s wife had answered the door when officers arrived, while the defendant was on a shooting holiday in Argentina. He was arrested at Heathrow Airport and when interviewed repeatedly gave “no comment” answers.
Crossland was also issued with a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years. He pleaded guilty to making 2,204,992 indecent photographs and videos of children between 1 January 2011 and 22 October 2018.
These included:· 28,686 images and 5,826 videos of the most extreme category A· 46,271 images and 3,008 videos in category B· 2,095,528 images and 12,302 videos in category C· 12,281 images and 201 videos containing prohibited images of children· 814 images and 30 videos containing extreme pornography. Crossland also admitted 11 charges relating to the possession of prohibited firearms, shot guns and rifles without licences, and ammunition offences, including:· a Hi Standard pistol· a .22 calibre revolver which used a self-contained gas cartridge system· two .22 calibre Weihrauch revolvers which use a self-contained gas cartridge system· a FN .22 automatic pistol which had a barrel less than 30 centimetres in length and which was less than 60 centimetres in length overall· a Miroku double barrelled shotgun· a Jager Armi/Moda P74 rifle· a smooth bore ornamental pistol· a .38 Brocock bolt action rifle which uses a self-contained gas cartridge system· a quantity of bullets designed to be used with a pistol and incorporating a missile designed or adapted to expand on impact and bullets in quantities in excess of those authorised by a firearms certificate in force at the time.
