Man sentenced for having tortoise sex act video

Videos found on James Owen's phone showed pornography involving animals including a tortoise

A man caught with extreme animal pornography, including videos depicting sexual acts with a tortoise and a horse, has been handed a six-month suspended sentence.

James Owen, 30, from Llanfechell, near Amlwch, Anglesey, had also pleaded guilty to having an indecent image of a young girl in the most serious category of child sexual abuse.

Owen told police the extreme animal pornography had been sent to him "as a joke" and he insisted he had not viewed the child abuse image.

He was also ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work by Caernarfon Crown Court, sitting in Llandudno on Friday.

The court heard Owen was arrested in October 2022 at his home, after an investigation into a paedophile called Craig Lewis.

Richard Edwards, prosecuting, said Lewis was involved in abusing children and taking images of them to distribute to others.

Metropolitan Police found evidence of online conversations between Lewis and Owen and discovered the single image of a young girl, aged between eight and 10, being sexually abused.

They then uncovered the video images of the extreme pornography, which showed sexual acts with a horse, a dog and a tortoise.

Mr Edwards said Owen claimed not to know the animal images were illegal.

The court was told Owen's internet searches also suggested a sexual interest in children.

Owen pleaded guilty to both offences at a magistrates' court hearing in September.

Sion ap Mihangel, defending Owen, said his client had shown genuine remorse and "felt an overwhelming sense of shame".

The court was told alcohol played a significant role in Owen’s offending and he had been undergoing rehabilitation sessions to address the problem.

Judge Timothy Petts told Owen his offences were "clearly serious", but said there was also a low risk of him re-offending.

As well as the suspended jail term and unpaid work, Owen must complete six months of alcohol treatment and 45 days of rehabilitation work, as well as registering as a sex offender for seven years.