A DEPRAVED pervert who sexually abused a friend's dog while looking after the animal has been caged.

Vile paedophile Andrew Flanagan, described as 'extremely sick' at court, was exposed after he photographed the animal abuse in which he forced a Rottweiller to engage in a sex act with him.

On investigating the 37-year-old of Field Avenue, Oxford, it was also revealed that he had in his possession a haul of banned images of child sex abuse, involving children as young as four, and had sent images to others.

Flanagan had already admitted six counts of making and distributing indecent images of children, as well as two counts of possessing extreme pornography and causing a serious sexual offence with an animal.

Oxford Crown Court heard at his sentencing hearing yesterday how the offences all took place in Oxford between October 2017 and September 2018.

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Outlining the case, prosecutor Christopher Hewertson said that police raided Flanagan's Blackbird Leys home at about 6.30am on September 26, 2018.

Various electronic items were seized including smart phones and a Lenovo laptop and Flanagan told officers he 'knew immediately why they were there'.

A subsequent investigation of the equipment found a haul of indecent images of children and animals being sexually abused.

In a sinister and unusual discovery, four images were found depicting Flanagan himself engaging in a sex act with the dog that he had been looking after for a friend.

Prosecutors said at the sentencing hearing that Flanagan was caring for the dog while the owner was at work and there was no indication that they knew of the abuse being dealt to the animal.

Of the banned images of children that were also uncovered investigators found that he had a total of 287 images in category A - the most severe category, 103 in category B and 125 in category C.

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It was also revealed that Flanagan had used file-sharing software such as eMule to distribute a number of the banned images to others.

He had sent to others six images of category A, two in category B and one in category C.

Search terms also revealed deliberate hunting for indecent images, which the judge called 'systematic searching for class A images' online, including terms such as 'pre-teen hardcore' and searches for five-year-old children.

Online chats also detailed Flanagan 'discussing and revelling in the sexual gratification that can be taken from sexual abuse of children'.

Officers also found that he had read Oxford Mail and Times articles about previous offenders being sentenced for having indecent images.

In mitigation yesterday his defence barrister James Reilley said his client suffered with 'extreme and severe depression and anxiety' and was taking medication for a diagnosis of HIV.

He said that Flanagan had had 'bouts of suicidal thoughts as a result' and called his client 'a good man' who had committed the 'out of character' offence at his 'lowest ebb'.

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Mr Reilley added that Flanagan was 'clearly extremely sick' and was 'terrified' at the prospect of going to prison.

Sentencing, Judge Nigel Daly said: "The possession of indecent images of children, you know because you are not an unintelligent man, that before these images can exist there has to be a child.

"And that child has to be assaulted and that child very often is in extreme distress.

"These images will never go away and they will be there for as long as we have got the internet available."

As Judge Daly told him he had to impose an immediate jail term Flanagan broke down in tears and sobbed.

Flanagan was jailed for a total of 30 months for all the offences and he will sign the sex offenders register for life.