A FATHER who downloaded images of child porn from an Internet site was jailed yesterday for 12 months.

Newcastle Crown Court heard how Jon Start, 34, admitted possession of almost 1,500 indecent images which were downloaded from a US website.

The court heard how Start was arrested after his details were passed on from FBI officers investigating the Landslide website.

Start was arrested at his home in Grange Villa, Chester-le-Street, and officers recovered floppy discs and CDs along with two hard drives containing "sickening" images.

The court heard how 1,475 images were recovered.

Tony Hawks, mitigating, told the court how his family had suffered since his arrest, including his partner and three-year-old daughter.

Jailing him for 12 months, Judge Beatrice Bolton said: "These images. . . are the most worrying and depraved I have ever seen."

Start, of Pine Street, Grange Villa, admitted 16 counts of possessing indecent material relating to children.