Nottinghamshire: Man who filmed and shared child abuse is jailed

Lee Bowdler owned 271 indecent images of children, some in the highest severity category

A man who secretly filmed two children in a bath and then shared severe child sex abuse images has been jailed.

Lee Bowdler, 52, of Bilsthorpe, Nottinghamshire, admitted using a hidden camera in a bathroom and owning 271 indecent images of children, some of which he posted on Twitter.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) said Bowdler had a "clear sexual interest" in children.

He was jailed for one year at Nottingham Crown Court on Tuesday.

Bowdler was also and handed a 10-year sexual harm prevention order

The NCA identified Bowdler after he posted indecent images of children on Twitter using an online moniker.

He was arrested at work in Colwick in May 2022.

Officers said they found 271 indecent images, some in the highest severity category, on eight of Bowdler's devices.

A secret recording of two children taking a bath, which Bowdler had filmed using a hidden camera, was also recovered by the NCA.

At Mansfield Magistrates' Court on 7 February. Bowdler admitted three counts of making indecent images of children, one count of distributing images and one count of voyeurism.

NCA operations manager Adam Sprague said: "Lee Bowdler clearly had a sexual interest in children, shown both by the footage he shot in the bathroom and the child abuse images he'd accumulated.

"There is a global demand for such material, so the NCA will never waver in its commitment to protect children from sexual abuse and bring perpetrators to justice.

An NSPCC spokesman said in the East Midlands, child abuse image offences, recorded by UK police, "have surged by 81% in just five years".

"Behind every one of the indecent images Bowdler downloaded and distributed are children, many who will have suffered abuse which could cause lasting harm," he added.