Mansfield man faced prospect of prison for possessing bestiality video on phone
A Mansfield man who failed to delete a bestiality video from his mobile phone lost his job and faced the prospect of a prison sentence, a court has heard.
Grant Allen was arrested in relation to other matters on June 20, 2021, and the video, which depicted a woman having sex with a dog, was discovered, said Lucy Woodcock, prosecuting.
She said the offence has a starting point of 12 months in custody, and a sexual harm prevention order must be imposed.
His defence solicitor said Allen lost his job as a result of the offence and is on benefits at the moment.
“He has entered a prompt guilty plea,” she said. “The video was sent to him in 2021.
"He started to watch it, realised what it was, and stopped."
She said he believed he had deleted the video, but it ended up on his new phone when he transferred the data over.
“There is no evidence to suggest he has sent it on or is the person who filmed it," she said. "He has lost his good character by virtue of his guilty plea.”
Allen, aged 58, of Howard Road, Mansfield, admitted possessing an extreme pornographic image, when he appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
"The starting point is a long custodial sentence but we don't feel custody is necessary in this case," the presiding magistrate told him.
The case was adjourned for a pre-sentence report from the probation service.
He will be sentenced on January 6.