A paedophile who ‘lived like a tramp’ in his friend’s spare bedroom has been spared jail, despite downloading more than 200,000 ‘ghastly’ indecent images of children.

Allen Maconachie, aged 45, amassed a 'revolting' collection of images while lodging at the house, in Kensington Road, Weston.

Maconachie pleaded guilty to three charges of making indecent photographs of children, and was handed a three-year community order at Bristol Crown Court on November 20.

The court heard Maconachie stashed hundreds of thousands of images on his computer, including 252 category A images or movies - the most serious kind.

Neil Treharne, prosecuting, said police intervened in July after discovering suspicious internet activity.

He continued: "Officers were shocked by the state of the room. It was almost like he was living like tramp. It was in a terrible state with empty bottles everywhere.

"The defendant was searching for things like 'paedo eight-year-olds', 'daddy and girls'. Searches for eight, 10 and 11-year-old girls were also found on the system."

Maconachie made a full admission to officers when questioned, saying he was 'addicted' and it had 'got out of hand'.

Paul Light, defending, said: "These offences are vile, there's no doubt about it and he knows that.

"He couldn't have been more honest about what he's done from the outset.

"He's determined to never go down that road again."

Maconachie, who has since moved to Poppy Road in Somerton, was handed a four-month curfew, an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order and was forced to sign the Sex Offenders Register.

Judge Richard Onslow, passing sentence on Maconachie, said: "You rented a room off a friend. I expect she would have liked it at first. But she must have been horrified to find the police ringing her up because somebody had been accessing indecent images of children from her address.

"You had an addiction to this sort of revolting child pornography. You probably thought they weren't real children, but you got hooked. But they are real children and people like you are causing them unimaginable pain and suffering for the rest of their lives.

"If you so much as try to look at any of these ghastly images again you will find yourself in that dock again, but you will be going down the stairs (to the cells)."

Judge Onslow also ordered the defendant to complete 40 rehabilitation days and for his computer devices to be destroyed.