A prolific child sex offender has been jailed for more than 13 years following the discovery of thousands of child abuse images across multiple devices. Andrew Sharp, 69, was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court on Friday 19 June 2026 after a comprehensive investigation by Kent Police.
&w=1024&h=370&scale=both&mode=max)
Andrew Sharp
The investigation began in 2025 when Sharp uploaded an indecent image of a child to the internet, triggering an alert to detectives. Officers subsequently executed a search warrant at his property in Station Road, Lydd, Romney Marsh, in June 2025 to seize his internet-enabled devices. Although Sharp was out of the country at the time, he was notified of the seizure. A subsequent digital forensics analysis of his laptop revealed the presence of child sexual abuse material.
Upon re-entering the country, Sharp sent a message to a phone contact confessing to the possession of the images and admitting he had taken indecent images of a young girl. He was arrested on 21 June 2025 and interviewed in custody, where he admitted to possessing the images on his laptop and confessed to sexually assaulting a young girl over a four-year period. He was initially charged with sexual assault and two indecent image offences before being remanded in custody.
As enquiries progressed, detectives discovered further laptops belonging to Sharp. A detailed forensic review of all his seized devices uncovered a total of 17,382 indecent images of children. Among the data were hundreds of images of his young victim, which provided detectives with evidence that she had also been raped.
Sharp was arrested again in November 2025 and pleaded guilty to 12 additional charges, including rape. He remained remanded in custody until his sentencing. A judge at Canterbury Crown Court handed Sharp a prison sentence of 13 years and 6 months. The court also granted a 20-year restraining order to protect his victim, alongside a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for the same duration.
Detective Constable Andrew Hunter said:
‘At no stage during the investigation did Sharp show any remorse for the sustained campaign of abuse he inflicted on his victim or for possessing such terrible images. I am pleased to see him behind bars where he can cause no further harm to our community, or to his victim.
‘I want to thank the victim and her family for their continued cooperation and for the resilience they have shown throughout this complex and upsetting investigation.’