A former Peterborough Detective Paedophile part of Cambridgeshire Constabulary, James Jordan, has been sentenced to four years in prison after confessing to downloading indecent photos of children and victims of sexual offences while on duty and will either be out already or out very soon.
James Jordan, 34, served as a detective constable in the Child Protection and Safeguarding Unit at Thorpe Wood Police Station.
Instead of safeguarding the vulnerable victims of crime he had pledged to protect, he “ran roughshod” over that trust, obtaining appalling photographs of infants as young as 18 months being molested and tortured.
His career and image have been irrevocably damaged following his sentencing at St Albans Crown Court on Friday.
Judge Michael Roques stated that James Jordan’s conduct engendered public suspicion in the police, created a risk that victims of crimes may refrain from coming forward, and allowed perpetrators to remain unpunished.
Judge Roques stated that James Jordan perpetrated the acts throughout the proceedings of many high-profile national cases involving police personnel, fully aware of the repercussions those cases had on public trust in the police.
James Jordan, attired in a suit and accompanied by family and friends [ENABLERS] in the public gallery, exhibited little emotion as he was escorted to commence his prison sentence.
During the most of the sentencing, he either closed his eyes or gazed at the floor.
James Jordan was dismissed by Cambridgeshire Police in January after confessing to multiple offences.
During the misconduct tribunal, Chief Constable Nick Dean stated that James Jordan’s transgressions had “dented the confidence” the public held in the police.
Matthew Sorel-Cameron, for the prosecution, informed the court that the offences occurred between February 2021 and August 2022.
The court was informed that he accessed phone downloads containing images of adult victims, preserving the ‘file pathways’ accessible on his computer when connected to the police system under files titled ‘amazing places’ and ‘hotels in Greece,’ even marking the videos he favoured with stars or exclamation marks.
He utilised his phone to capture images of the abuse inflicted onto a young victim’s phone.
In August of the previous year, while retrieving recordings for legitimate reasons, he unlawfully downloaded videos of voyeurism victims onto a USB drive.
James Jordan subsequently accessed a database with photographs of child abuse.
An officer observed unauthorised access to photographs, prompting an inquiry that subsequently resulted in Jordan’s arrest.
James Jordan was determined to have no valid justification for accessing the images, which pertained to cases from many counties.
He was apprehended the subsequent day and was re-arrested on November 8 following an examination of gadgets confiscated from his residence.
An examination of his iPad revealed that he had concealed certain video clips utilising encryption applications.
‘Genuine remorse and regret’
Michael Epstein, defending, said Jordan had shown genuine remorse and regret for his actions.
He said that “on the other side of the coin” to the man who committed the offences, James Jordan was a “sensitive, bright, caring, decent person,” who had shown “courage” in facing up to his offending.
He also added that as a former police officer, who had committed the offences he had done, he would face a particularly hard time in prison.
However, Judge Roques said James Jordan’s breach of trust had impacted three groups of people – the victims of sexual abuse whose images he had accessed, his fellow police officers, and the general public as a whole.
He said: “It is incredibly difficult to quantify the true impact of your offending – indeed, it may well be it is never known. You were part of the Child Protection Safeguarding unit, designed to protect the most vulnerable victims.”
Judge Roques said James Jordan “rode roughshod” over the trust of his victims and stripped his victims of their dignity.
The court heard the cost of the investigation to Cambridgeshire Police added up to around £400,000 – but the impact on the trust the public had in the force had decreased as a result of his offending.
Judge Roques said: “There has been hurt caused to members of the team working on your team.”
He said James Jordan’s actions caused ‘mistrust’ among the wider public.
He said: “The danger with cases like this is that if even a single person decides not to report what happened to them as a result of your actions, crimes are not investigated and perpetrators go free.”
Judge Roques said the law required him to give Jordan a one third discount on his jail sentence, as a result of his guilty plea at the first court hearing.
He also said he took into account his “genuine and bitter remorse.”
The judge said James Jordan will be released half way through his prison sentence.
Along with the jail term, James Jordan will have to sign the sex offenders register for 10 years, and was made subject of a sexual harm prevention order for 10 years.
James Jordan pleaded guilty to five counts of making indecent images of children and three counts of misconduct in a public office at a court hearing last year.
‘Appalling abuse of position’
An NSPCC East of England spokesperson said: “James Jordan’s actions were an appalling abuse of his position of trust as a police officer. Through his police training and employment, Jordan would have been very aware of the devastation that sexual abuse has on children’s lives.
“The NSPCC would encourage anyone who has experienced sexual abuse, no matter when it happened or who the perpetrator was, to speak out and seek support.”
Children can contact Childline on 0800 1111. Adults with concerns about the safety or wellbeing of a child can phone the NSPCC helpline on 0808 8005000 or email help@nspcc.org.uk
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