The former Leader of Lib Dem held Kingston Council, Derek Osbourne, appeared today at Southwark Crown Court, charged with 17 counts of possessing and distributing indecent images of children. He pleaded guilty to them all.
Cllr Liz Green, the current Council Leader, made this statement:
Colleagues and acquaintances have expressed shock and sadness to me about Derek, who was held in high esteem by many of us across the political divide. The news of his arrest for serious sex charges back in June came as a bolt out of the blue to all of us.
The police have said that his offences did not relate to his role at the council. He didn’t have a council computer, the images were found on his personal computer at home. Now he has pleaded guilty this is clearly an issue that we must leave for the judicial system. We have all moved on significantly since his arrest.
My thoughts are with all the children that have been exploited in the making of child pornography and I support more Government funding to policing, victim support and child protection teams.
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