Nottingham man avoids jail after indecent images found on phone

Hamza Shazad admitted seven offences, but was found not guilty of four more serious counts by a jury

A man who had indecent images found on his phone has been handed a suspended sentence.

Hamza Shazad had admitted making and distributing indecent photos of a child and possessing extreme pornographic images.

The 27-year-old, of Ewart Road in Nottingham, was found not guilty of four other offences following a trial.

Last month two other men who stood trial alongside him were jailed for targeting vulnerable teenage girls.

Shazad had admitted three counts of making indecent photographs of children, one count of possessing extreme pornographic images and three counts of distributing indecent photographs of a child.

He denied engaging in sexual communication with a child, two counts of causing or inciting a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in penetrative sexual activity and one count of meeting a girl under 16 years of age following grooming, and was found not guilty by the jury.

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Shazad was given a 16-month sentence suspended for 18 months, must undergo rehabilitation and complete unpaid work, and has been barred from working with children.

Judge John Burgess said that while Shazad had been cleared by a jury of more serious charges, the offences he admitted committing warranted a potential custodial sentence.

"People need to know that the public regard this kind of thing as utterly repellent," he said.

Det Insp Jamie Hill, who led the investigation for Nottinghamshire Police, said Shazad's sentence "brings to an end a very demanding investigation".