A man who distributed child pornography over the internet was jailed for 18 months yesterday, bringing to an end a case that has highlighted a glaring gap in Gibraltar law.

Acting Chief Justice Anthony Dudley said the sentence would have ranged from between two to five years had the man been prosecuted in the UK.

 

But “unfortunately” possessing images of children being sexually abused is not a crime in Gibraltar, he said.

The prospect of a forthcoming change in the law was briefly raised during yesterday’s hearing.

Draft legislation prepared by the Gibraltar Government echoes British law and will make possession of child pornography a crime punishable by up to 10 years in jail.

But the prospect of legislative reform was irrelevant for this case and the judge made that clear during an exchange with defence lawyers.

“I deal with what I have, not with what may be,” Mr Justice Dudley said.

Swedish national Michael Klinkiewicz, 39, pleaded guilty to one charge of publishing obscene images, an offence that carries a maximum sentence of three year’s imprisonment.

He had distributed nearly 5,000 pornographic images of children to 30 different people.

They included several photos of an extreme nature involving young children and babies.

“The depravity…of anyone wanting to view these images is beyond comprehension to any right minded individual,” Mr Justice Dudley said.

“They range from the disgusting to the abhorrent.”

The judge said downloading and distributing child pornography was not a victimless crime.

He said the children in the images had suffered “distress, fear, corruption and, in some cases, physical harm”.

All of them had suffered psychologically and emotionally, he said.

In sentencing, he gave Klinkiewicz credit for an early guilty plea and acknowledged that his mental health was “precarious”.

Klinkiewicz has already served four months on remand and that will be taken into account as time served.