A man who collected almost 1,000 indecent images of children, including some as young as two, has been spared jail.

Mark Symonds, 38, was linked to an IP address uploading an indecent image of a child to the internet.

A warrant was carried out at his house in Truman Avenue, March, on June 18 last year. A number of devices were seized, of which two laptops and one USB stick was found containing indecent images.

The seized items were reviewed and found to contain 373 category C images and videos, 180 category B and 395 category A (the most severe).

Symonds pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of a child.

Yesterday at Peterborough Crown Court he was given 12 months in jail suspended for 24 months and given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) for ten years.

DS Julia Boon said: "Symonds downloaded images time and time again and he would have continued without our intervention. The SHPO will allow us to monitor him very closely checking any internet enabled devices he has at any moment".

Anyone who is concerned someone may have been convicted of a sex offence, and could be posing a risk to someone, can apply for disclosure information through Clare's Law and Sarah's Law.

More information on sexual offences and the Sex Offenders Register can be found on the force website here.