A BLACKBURN man snared by an international investigation into child porn on the internet has been jailed for eight months.

Preston Crown Court heard Paul Bielby had a "morbid curiosity that got out of hand" until he was discovered during an operation carried out by the FBI.

Confectioner Bielby, 41, of Mowbray Avenue, was committed to Preston Crown Court for sentence after pleading guilty at the magistrates court to 14 charges of making indecent images of children. The charges referred to some 1,380 indecent images.

The court heard in excess of 100 of the images were of level four, defined as sex between adults and children. Some of the images had shown children in distress.

In addition to the jail sentence, Bielby was also put on the Sex Offenders Register for ten years. An order was also made for the forfeiture of his computer and the pornographic material.

Julian Holt, prosecuting, told the court the case arose from Operation Nickel -- an investigation which was instigated by the FBI into indecent photographs and other material involving children downloaded from the internet.

The FBI material was passed on to police forces around the world and largely involved material which had been accessed and paid for with credit cards.

An early morning search warrant was executed at the home Bielby shared with his elderly parents. A computer and discs were seized and he was arrested. He accepted he had got images from the internet. He had visited music sites and to use his words he had a "morbid curiosity that got completely out of hand."

Bielby told police no one else had access to his computer. Charles Brown, defending, said Bielby was of previous good character. He had made admissions to police and had pleaded guilty. Bielby felt deep shame and deep humiliation. He had brought disgrace on himself and his family.

His photograph and a list of charges and the nature of the charges had been set out in the Lancashire Evening Telegraph.

"He has not been out socially since his apprehension for these matters," said Mr Brown.

Bielby said he had been using the internet to acquire music from sites with links to porn sites and out of curiosity he had acquired the material, most of which had been free.

"Clearly from the volume of material before the court, having been lured in he became ensnared," said Mr Brown.

"Once on the slope, almost without realising it, the punter becomes more and more enmeshed."

There was no suggestion the children were known to Bielby, nor that he had distributed the material. It had all been for his own use.

"He has learnt a very hard lesson by being apprehended. He has slipped into committing crime without realising it," said Mr Brown.

Judge Stuart Baker told Bielby: "All show the children used as sexual objects. One can only imagine the level of degradation and watering down of decency those children would have suffered.

"Some of them were paid for. Every time somebody pays it gives help and encouragement to those who produce it.

"I have come to the conclusion the court would be failing in its public duty if it did not pass a sentence of imprisonment."

He said he had taken into account that Bielby had pleaded guilty and that he had endured a degree of public humiliation by the case being reported by the press and that he had not distributed the material.