A BEDROOM dwelling paedophile was caught with hundreds of indecent images of children.

Thomas Fearn, 21, was caught with the images across two computers and a number of mobile phones.

Southampton Crown Court heard Fearn began downloading the images of young children, when he was just 15 years old.

The court was also told how Fearn a “socially awkward and extremely isolated” man who had confined himself to the “four walls of his bedroom”.

Southampton Crown Court heard how Fearn had downloaded the images between 2013 and 2018.

Police visited his home in St Catherine’s View, Hedge End, in August last year after receiving information that indecent images were being downloaded at his address.

Prosecutor Jodie-Jane Hitchcock said police found 483 indecent images of which 139 were category A images – the most serious kind.

Officers also found 10 extreme pornographic images.

Fearn pleaded guilty to three counts of possessing indecent images of children and one count of possessing extreme pornographic images.

In mitigation, Peter Asteris said of Fearn: “He’s a young man, isolated, social awkward and shut away. He lives a totally isolated life. His life is stuck behind four walls."

Ms Asteris said Fearn, who had no previous convictions, had left school with good GCSE results but had dropped out of college due to his social awkwardness.

In sentencing, Judge Nicholas Rowland said: “There are four serious offences. It seems you were inhabiting your own world within the four walls of your room.

“The children in these images were very much inhabiting the real world. It was real suffering and real pain.”

He added:”Because of an absence of previous convictions I can take a different course [from prison or a suspended sentence].”

Fearn was sentenced to a three year community order, including 31 days of a sex offenders programme and 20 days of rehabilitation activity requirement.

He was also ordered to do 150 hours of unpaid work, given a sexual harm prevention order for five years and made subject of registration requirements.