Shropshire drugs firm boss had 400,000 child porn images
An executive with a multi-national company had more than 400,000 indecent images of children on computers recovered from his Shropshire home, a court heard.
Heath Forbes Heatlie, director of health outcome solutions for the drug manufacturing giant GlaxoSmithKline in Shrewsbury, had also been involved in a network that distributed some of the material on the internet.
At Shrewsbury Crown Court, Heatlie, 48, of Rye Bank, Wem, was given a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for a year, and told he must also complete a rehabilitation programme.
Passing sentence, Judge Jim Tindal said he had taken into account the high volume of material and the attempts by Heatlie to conceal evidence and his involvement in a network distributing the images.
Judge Tindal said the defendant had led a responsible life and could have been regarded as a pillar of the community – but that his home life had revealed a darker side.
"In your own words you called it a 'period of insanity' and all the images were derived from the actual abuse of children," he said.
He said Heatlie's conviction would have catastrophic consequences for him both financially and professionally.
In addition Heatlie will be on the sex offenders register for 10 years and was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order which will remain in force until further order of the court.
Heatlie had pleaded guilty to three charges of making indecent images of children in August, 2014, and one charge of distributing the material between August 2011 and August 2014.
At court, Philip Beardwell, prosecuting, said the offences came to light two years ago in connection with a police operation in another part of the country.
Officers went to Heatlie's home in August 2014, and seized nine items of computer equipment including several laptops, two portable hard-drives, two iPads and a desk-top computer.
Mr Beardwell said Heatlie had installed software in an attempt to 'scrub clean' the computers' hardware and also used various identities on internet sites.
The court heard that after his 25-year relationship ended he used dating sites and began browsing adult pornography and which led to the indecent images of children.
After his arrest Heatlie told police he was shocked by the number of images and could not believe he had committed the offences.
Mr Stephen Scully, for Heatlie, said his client was "repulsed and disgusted" by his actions.
