A man has been jailed for 14 years after he shared indecent images of children. 

Jordan Reid, of Victoria Gardens in Colchester, was sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court on Wednesday.

The 30-year-old openly told officers that he had been engaging in conversations where indecent images of children had been shared.  

It came after police conducted a warrant at his home in January 2023. 

Investigations found that Reid had been pretending to be a 14-year-old girl and a 14-year-old boy whilst engaging in sexual communications with multiple children.

He was subsequently charged with 14 offences, including causing a child under 13 to engage in a sexual act, causing a child to watch a sexual act and distributing inappropriate images of children. 

On August 24 at Chelmsford Crown Court Reid pleaded guilty to the charges. 

He has also been issued with a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for life. 

Speaking at his sentencing, William Clegg KC said to Reid: "You have done untold damage to those children and no one will ever know what psychological harm you have caused.”

After the case Detective Constable Matthew Wright from Essex Police said: “This was a thorough investigation by our Police Online Investigation Team and as a result, a dangerous man has been put in prison.

“We worked closely with partner agencies to facilitate the intelligence we needed to quickly investigate Reid so he couldn’t harm any more children.”

“The internet should be a space where young people can communicate with friends and stay connected.

“It should not be an environment where perpetrators can take advantage of vulnerable victims and our Police Online Investigation Team will continue to work hard to stop this.”