'Dangerous' Tunbridge Wells paedophile jailed for 14 years
- Published
Smith saved videos of the "sickening" abuse on his computer
A paedophile who travelled to the Philippines to film himself abusing a two-year-old girl has been jailed.
Timothy Smith, 42, of Burslem Road, Tunbridge Wells, last month admitted 16 charges relating to various child sex offences.
These included the sexual assault of another child and sharing thousands of indecent images of children.
He was handed an extended sentence of 14 years with a minimum term of 10 years at Maidstone Crown Court.
Judge Martin Joy told the former Tesco security guard: "There is no doubt you do pose a very great danger, a significant danger, to children."
Kent Police raided Smith's home in November 2016 after "suspicious online activity".
'Offending for decade'
Officers found more than 37,000 still images on his hard drive, with many classed as category A - the most serious.
During interrogation, he admitted a sexual interest in young children and revealed he had been offending for a decade.
Kent Police said he referred to himself as a paedophile and admitted visiting the Philippines in 2015 to abuse the child.
On 9 November Smith was convicted of:
three counts of sexual assault of a child between August and November 2015
three counts of distributing indecent images of children
three counts of taking indecent images of children
six counts of making indecent images of children
one of sexual activity with a child in August 2013
Judge Joy branded Smith's crimes "abhorrent" and said the abuse had a particularly devastating effect on one victim who later tried to kill herself.
'Extremely dangerous'
The judge also expressed surprise Smith had been allowed out on bail and said it was "remarkable" that he had been cautioned in 1995 for sexual assault of a child under four.
Det Con Mark Bennett said: "Timothy Smith is an extremely dangerous individual who is now facing justice for his appalling actions.
"He has demonstrated little, if any, regard for the suffering of victims of these sickening crimes.
"I am delighted that again, an investigation into someone accessing indecent images has uncovered the truth of these offences - that they are real victims, suffering real abuse."
He has been placed on the sex offenders register for life.