Almost 20,000 indecent images of children found at paedophile’s home | UK | News
A pedophile who ran several online child abuse chat groups from his seaside home was trapped as he exchanged lewd messages with fellow sexual perverts. Joao-Carlos Jardim Dos Santos Teixeira, 26, was a member of three groups on various online messaging platforms dedicated to sharing and discussing child sexual abuse material, including AI-generated images. But his depravity spilled over into the physical world, as he encouraged a group member to abuse a child.
National Crime Agency officers raided Teixeira at his home in Eastbourne in February 2024 to arrest him and seized many of his electronic devices. It was revealed that he participated in many “secret chats” where a mix of fake and banned images were shared. These included hyper-realistic images created by artificial intelligence and rated as Category A, the most serious category. Nearly 20,000 indecent images of children and banned images were detected on their devices, more than 1,000 of which were Category A.
National Crime Agency officers raided Teixeira at his home in Eastbourne in February 2024 to arrest him and seized many of his electronic devices.
It was revealed that he participated in many “secret chats” where a mix of fake and banned images were shared. These included the most serious, Category A-rated, hyper-realistic AI-generated images.
Nearly 20,000 indecent images of children and banned images were detected on their devices, including more than 1,000 Category A.
Evidence was also found that he encouraged another user to engage in sexual activity with a 13-year-old boy.
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Teixeira was released on bail but was arrested again in November 2025 after he continued to commit crimes online.
He pleaded guilty to all charges at Lewes Crown Court in December 2025. He was sentenced to 11 years and 4 months in prison at the same place on Tuesday.
Sentencing the sex monster, Judge Mooney said: “What I ask is how you could be so cruel. No sentence I impose will compensate for the harm you have caused, but there must be a significant degree of deterrence in sentencing.”
NCA Senior Investigating Officer Danielle Pownall said: “Teixeira was actively seeking out online communities in which he could indulge his predatory desires. He was attempting to conceal his online activities while searching for like-minded people who would engage in child exploitation offending.”
“The fact that he went beyond the digital world and encouraged another user to abuse children shows the threat he poses to society.
“Anyone who thinks they can use the internet to hide their crimes is greatly mistaken. The NCA will continue to catch perpetrators of child sexual abuse and bring them to justice.”
