A PERVERT who had a stash of almost 25,000 internet child porn images has been jailed for four years.

Burnley Crown Court heard that David Mark Worrell, 30, downloaded and stored indecent pictures of youngsters and also distributed photos by making them available to others on a file-sharing website.

Worrell, who viewed obscene pictures of girls aged three to 13 being abused, also took part in internet chat in which he claimed he had raped a five-year-old. He did it all while his partner was in bed.

Worrell told police he was addicted to child porn and what he had done was sick. Police had seized his computer, but he got some more and carried on. He password protected his images with the word ‘paedo’.

Worrell, of Carter Street, Burnley, had admitted three counts of distributing an indecent image of a child involving almost 50 level-three, four and one images, and five charges of making an indecent photo of a child.

He had owned up to downloading 280 photos at level five – the most serious level – 1,500 at level four, 1,500 at level three, 353 at level two and 15,000 at level one. The offences took place in Colne between June 2011 and last October.

The defendant, who had no previous convictions, later pleaded guilty to 10 more similar allegations. These offences took place between last December and July this year. Worrell was ordered to sign the Sexual Offenders’ Register for life and was given a lifelong Sexual Offences Prevention Order, allowing police to monitor his internet use.

Stephen Parker, prosecuting, said that when police raided the Dent Street home in Colne where Worrell then lived with his family last October, he told officers he did it after his partner had gone to bed, and added: “She will kill me. She’s probably going to kill me now.”

Martin Hackett, defending, said: “He has lost everything. His partner has now ended the relationship.”

Judge Beverley Lunt told Worrell:: “There is clearly something very, very wrong with you.”