'Dishonest' paedophile 'still needs monitoring'
BBCA "dishonest" and "manipulative" paedophile still needs monitoring almost 20 years after being convicted of child sex offences, a judge has said.
Gordon Bishop, 45, who was jailed for making indecent images of children in 2007, was back in Newcastle Crown Court after failing to get permission from police to install the messaging app Telegram on his phone.
Bishop, from Hetton-le-Hole, Sunderland, was jailed for 16 months suspended for two years after he admitted breaching a sexual risk prevention order.
Judge Robert Spragg said the public would "likely be better served in the long-term" if Bishop continued to work with the authorities to address his "issues".
Bishop was jailed for three years and made subject to an order to restrict his internet usage and contact with children in 2007 after making indecent paedophilic images, the court heard.
He breached that order in 2013 by contacting a child online and was jailed for another two years in 2015 for starting a relationship with a woman who had a child, the court heard.
'App ambiguity'
Clause three of his court order said he needed the permission of the police before he downloaded any apps for chat rooms, dating sites, bulletin boards or social networking platforms, Spragg said.
In July 2025 officers conducting a regular review found he had downloaded and accessed Telegram a few days earlier, the court heard.
Bishop claimed he only had it briefly to contact his then-partner and thought its categorisation as a messaging app meant it did not fall under the auspices of his order, the court heard.
His barrister Chris Hegarty said there was "at least room for ambiguity on that point" but Bishop should have erred on the side of caution and spoken to police first.
He also said there had been no further child sex offences since the ones Bishop was jailed for in 2007.
'Clear sexual interest'
Spragg said the probation service believed Bishop was "deceptive and dishonest" and posed a high risk of harm to children.
But immediate imprisonment for breaching the order would have resulted in the loss of his work and home, increasing the likelihood of his reoffending, the court heard.
Under a suspended sentence, he would be subject to "robust supervision and risk-focused work" to try and address the underlying causes of his behaviour, the judge said.
"You are a dishonest and manipulative man who has a clear sexual interest in children," Spragg told Bishop. "You do need to be closely monitored."
He said the public would "likely be better served in the long-term" by him "staying in the community to address [his] issues rather than serving a relatively short prison sentence".
The sexual risk order would remain in place indefinitely, the judge said.
Bishop was also ordered to pay £500 towards the prosecution's costs.
