A PAEDOPHILE who downloaded thousands of indecent images of children has been spared jail.

Stephen Dupuy, 54, of Augustus Close, Colchester, was arrested in 2022 after police officers visited his home.

The force had received information his IP address had been used to access indecent images of children.

When his laptop was analysed it was found to contain 310 indecent images of children in the most serious level A category, 293 in level B and 3,386 images in the lowest level C category.

Dupuy admitted three offences of making indecent images of children, possessing an extreme pornograhic image and possessing one prohibited image of a child.

After a court hearing he was given a three-year community order, a 45-day rehabilitation activity requirement and a three-month curfew.

He was also made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for five years and ordered to sign the sex offender’s register for the same period.

Mitigating Ruth Becker said Dupuy had been receiving help from the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, the child protection charity, since the offences came to light.

She said the offences were committed against a background of Covid, alcohol and bereavement and he had now stopped drinking.

She said he was remorseful and ashamed of what he’d done.