‘Horrible’ Surrey Police Community Support Officer who admitted taking and distributing child abuse photos has been sentenced to six years in prison
A former PCSO has been sentenced to six years in prison after pleading guilty to 33 counts of making, creating or distributing indecent images of children.
William Redwood, 24, pleaded guilty in July 2022 to possessing and taking the unauthorized photos, which were taken between 2016 and 2020.
The victims, both men and women, were between the ages of 12 and 17 when the images were taken.
Redwood, who joined Surrey Police in October 2019 as a PCSO from Runnymede, was aged between 17 and 22 at the time of the offences.
His supervisor expressed concern in August 2020 that Redwood had formed “an improper and covert association” and had gained access to confidential police information without due cause.
William Redwood, 24, pleaded guilty to 33 counts of possessing, distributing or making indecent images of children and was jailed for six years
He resigned from the police force in December 2020 ahead of an internal misconduct hearing, after the indecent images were found on his phone when it was seized.
The former PCSO has been placed on a banned list.
Deputy Chief Nev Kemp said: ‘This case has had a devastating impact on the victims involved and I commend them for their courage in giving us statements that led to him pleading guilty at an earlier hearing. I hope that all those affected by his heinous criminal actions can take some comfort in the fact that he is now behind bars and that it gives them some closure.
“It is extremely regrettable that Redwood had the privilege of serving as a PCSO with Surrey Police. As soon as these concerns came to light, he was suspended and a thorough and determined investigation was conducted. A subsequent misconduct hearing found that he would have been fired had he not resigned.
Surrey Police will always proactively seek to identify and remove individuals who fail to meet standards of professional conduct or meet the strict expectations of the public.
“The severity of the custodial sentence imposed on him today is welcome and reflects the seriousness of his crime and marks the conclusion of a traumatic and complex investigation.”
