A SMART meter installer was left ‘horrified’ after he discovered a customer had four framed indecent pictures of naked children on his bedroom wall.

He had gone upstairs in Phillip Gilbert’s Knutsford home to the toilet, and by chance glanced through an open bedroom door and spotted the images.

A court heard that Gilbert, a grandfather, had printed them out after downloading them along with more than 2,000 other indecent images of children being abused.

The meter installer told his boss, and the police and an officer went to Gilbert’s home and spoke to him - but did not enter the bedrooms.

The reason why he had not entered the bedrooms was unknown, said Chris Taylor, prosecuting, but the next day two other officers went round and arrested Gilbert.

Items of a sexual nature were found in a wardrobe, but were not the subject of any offence.

“After arresting him and asking if he had any other material he responded ‘come on then, I’ll show you, so you don’t make a mess’.”

Gilbert, a retired plumber, led them to a front bedroom, and from the bottom drawer from a chest and a cavity within a wardrobe he produced a number of folders which contained indecent photographs of children and a laptop.

“He told them, ‘I know it’s getting out of control. When you live on your own you need someone to give you a kick up the arse’. I’ve been telling myself for years, I’ve got kids and grandkids, just get rid but I never did. If my son and daughter ever find out I don’t know what I’ll do'.”

A full analysis of his computer, an SD card and the folders revealed he had 2,015 indecent images of children of girls ranging in age from six to 14 and of boys aged 12 to 14.

They were in all categories of seriousness, but the majority were in the lowest category.

Gilbert had used various incriminating search terms when browsing the web for such images, said Mr Taylor.

A total of seven images of bestiality were found and in the house officers found a box containing several pairs of soiled children’s underwear “and pictures of him wearing those knickers in a state of arousal,” said Chris Taylor, prosecuting.

Gilbert, of Lowe Drive, Knutsford, pleaded guilty at Liverpool Crown Court to five offences involving downloading and possessing the indecent images.

Defence barrister Gareth Roberts said 67-year-old Gilbert was relieved when the police arrived at his home, “as it started the process of him bringing to an end what he knew was a bad thing and started his rehabilitation.”

He had no previous convictions and was regarded by the probation service as a low risk of reoffending.

Mr Roberts said he had had an unhappy life, being abused as a child, and although he was married for 33 years his wife began suffering mental health problems when their children were young and was sectioned.

“Since his wife’s death and possibly before he became increasingly isolated living alone.”

He added that he had not had a good relationship with his children and was now estranged from them since the offences came to light.

“He had become increasingly obsessed with pursuing pornographic images of children, it became it was what he did most days and he knew he was doing wrong and accepted that behind every image there was an abused child.”

Mr Roberts said he no longer had any equipment enabling him to get onto the internet and did not want any potential for re-offending to come into his life.

Sentencing him to a three-year community order, Judge Stephen Everett said Gilbert had had more than 2,000 indecent images of children, “and we will never know what happened to those children.”

“You and people like you encourage this behaviour. They may have been disposed of by these terrible people to stop them talking. Potentially the last moments of life was that sexual abuse and then their lives ended. You will never know.”