Student, 21, makes astounding request as he's arrested over child abuse images

A man has avoided jail after being found in possession of hundreds of child abuse images, including nearly 350 that fall in the most serious category.

Ashraful Islam, 21, of Chippenham, pleaded guilty to taking indecent images of children and voyeurism when he appeared in court last Friday (September 10).

He was sentenced to 26 months in prison , suspended for three years, and was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) for 10 years.

Islam was first arrested in connection with an unrelated matter in March 2026, Wiltshire Police said.

When officers seized his phone, they found a significant number of child abuse images, including nearly 350 classified as Category A - depicting the most serious form of child abuse.

Images showing the 'upskirting' of schoolgirls were also found on Islam's device. British Transport Police defines 'upskirting' as "a type of voyeurism when someone uses equipment like a camera or mobile phone to take photos or videos underneath a person’s clothes, without their permission".

In police footage of Islam's arrest over the images, when officers asked whether he needed to take anything with him to the police station, he could be heard saying: "I really need to put my uni work in, otherwise I fail," Gloucestershire Live reports.

Det Con Will Saunders, of Wiltshire Police , said: "Islam was found in possession of hundreds of images of child abuse.

"Each of these images represents a real victim who has suffered serious, life changing abuse and those who view, possess, or share such material are contributing to that harm.

"I’d like to thank the officers who worked on this case particularly the digital forensics unit whose hard work allowed us to uncover a true picture of his offending."

In addition to the custodial sentence and SHPO, Islam must pay a £228 surcharge and complete 200 hours of unpaid work.