A PAEDOPHILE who tried to find work at nurseries has been jailed for grooming and sexually assaulting four children – including a toddler.

Keats Harvey was arrested at his home in West Wittering, near Chichester, in May last year and charged with 14 counts of child sexual abuse offences.

The 24-year-old was found guilty of all charges at Hove Crown Court in July this year, which included six counts of possessing indecent images of children, two counts of assaulting a child under 13 by touching and meeting a girl under 16 following grooming.

Last week, Harvey was sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison.

Harvey, originally from the US, sought jobs at nurseries and hospitals in the UK to meet and abuse young people, the court heard.

Almost 9,000 indecent images of children and 630 prohibited images were discovered on his electronic devices, which he had collated between 2015 and 2020.

Of these, 860 were category A - the most severe and extreme category for child pornography.

The Argus: Keats Harvey Keats Harvey

Investigators also discovered a large number of chat logs and emails in which he had sent and received these images from other like-minded individuals, as well as admitting to having molested three children.

He met his victims through other adults and made several attempts to meet and abuse children by befriending vulnerable adults with children.

A court heard he assaulted a child while at a party.

National Crime Agency (NCA) investigators identified another American national they suspected had sexually abused an 11-year-old boy.

Intelligence was shared with police officers in Seattle, US, and the man, a teacher, was arrested and the child safeguarded.

NCA regional head of investigations Peter Stevens said Harvey was conducting “very serious offending, not just online but by physically abusing young children”.

“On top of this, he was actively trying to befriend adults who had children and had researched jobs on the internet at hospitals and nurseries, all with the aim of gaining access to children,” he said.

“In my view, he is an offender whose behaviour was escalating in terms of the severity of the abuse he was trying to commit.

"The sentence handed down is a reflection of that and I’m pleased he is behind bars where he no longer poses a risk to children.”

Peter added that prosecuting individuals like Harvey who are a “sexual threat to children” is a priority for the NCA.

"My team worked tirelessly on this case throughout the pandemic, in very difficult circumstances, reviewing huge quantities of particularly disturbing material to build the case against him and ensure he would face justice,” he added.

“We also received support from Sussex and Hampshire Police in identifying other linked offenders and safeguarding victims.

"This partnership working is vital to protect the most vulnerable members of our society and I am grateful for the support we received.”