The case of Isle of Wight padeophile Jonathan Maertens, who was jailed for life with a minimum of 16 years near the end of last year, has been referred to the Court of Appeal.
The 35-year-old from Freshwater, recorded footage of himself sexually abusing female children aged between 4 and 17.
Thousands of images and videos
Almost 2,500 pieces of footage and over 12,000 indecent images detailing his direct offending were found on the hard drives.
In addition to this, a further 6,500 videos and 197, 000 indecent images of children were also located.
Sentence deemed “unduly lenient”
Maertens could now face a longer sentence after his life sentence was deemed “unduly lenient” by the Attorney General’s office.
The Solicitor General said that he was shocked by the seriousness of Maerten’s offences and has referred the case to the Court of Appeal to decide whether to increase the sentence.
He expressed his deepest sympathies to Maerten’s victims.
Source: Isle of Wight Radio
Image: nespirit under CC BY 2.0
