West Sussex man jailed for online child sex offending

A police search of his home also revealed several digital devices hidden in his bathroom, according to Sussex Police.

A spokesman said: “Mark Grindon, 36, unemployed, of Swallowfield Close, Mannings Heath, near Horsham, was sentenced to a total of 18 months imprisonment at Guildford Crown Court on Monday, December 16, having been convicted of going online to look at the sites of the young girls, and of possessing the items, despite a court order directing him not to do so.”

In November 2016 Grindon was convicted at Chichester Crown Court of making indecent images of children.

Police said he was given a suspended prison sentence and as well as being a registered sex offender, he was also given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), severely restricting his contact with children and computers and requiring him to clear any such contact with supervising police officers.

But early in 2019 as a result of police checks, it became clear that on his Instagram account he had been looking at the accounts of more than 30 girls from across the country, aged between 11 and 15, mainly in ballet and leotard outfits, the spokesman added.

He said: “This was a clear breach of the SHPO and when police searched his home they found camera phones, a GoPro camera and a computer tablet concealed in a hidden compartment behind a false shelf in his bathroom, alongside sex toys and girl’s leotards. They also found a camcorder. His possession of all these breached the Order.”

As a result of his latest conviction on December 16 Grindon will also be a registered sex offender indefinitely and was given a renewed SHPO, again to last indefinitely, continuing the severe restrictions on access to children and computers.

The restrictions include a ban in his using any form of social media.

PC Louise Giles of the Sussex Police team responsible for monitoring registered sex offenders in the community in West Sussex said; “Grindon failed to abide by restrictions placed on him by the Crown Court in order to protect children.

“Enforcement action like this sends a clear public message that we continue to robustly monitor and enforce the requirements placed upon sex offenders in order to protect the community.”