A PAEDOPHILE who has repeatedly flouted restrictions on his computer use has been spared a prison sentence – because he is on the autism spectrum.

A judge told Neil Johnson that he had been planning to lock him up until he read details of his condition in a psychological report.

Johnson, 33, was given an eight-month suspended prison sentence and put on a 30-day rehabilitation activity requirement.

Registered sex offender Johnson was caught with almost 600 indecent images of children when police visited his Stockton home.

The photographs and movies were on a laptop at his parents’ home in Hartlepool, where he had also registered a Twitter account.

Johnson – who was first prosecuted in 2008 for having indecent images – is subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, which he has repeatedly breached.

The order is designed to restrict his computer use, and allows police to monitor him closely, prosecutor Emma Atkinson said.

Miss Atkinson told Teesside Crown Court that some of the filth was found on a PlayStation games system, and on a compact disc.

Andrew Teate, mitigating for Johnson, said his client has had repeated police visits since his arrest 18 months ago and has not offended again.

He said the laptop belonging to his father contained more than 500,000 innocent family photos, and he wanted them or the computer back.

Judge Howard Crowson said he had to make an order for it to be destroyed, but hoped the police would put the pictures on a disc.

“It’s unfortunate the father allowed his son with previous convictions to use his computer,” Judge Crowson told Mr Teate.

“I hope the police will be sympathetic towards this order to forfeit and destroy, and ask them to make a copy of the photographs.”

Johnson, of Borough Road, Middlesbrough, admitted two charges of making indecent images, and breaching the Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

The sentence was suspended for 18 months, and unemployed Johnson was also ordered to pay £250 towards the cost of the prosecution.