A 49-year-old man was found to have been secretly filming a teenage girl and downloading child porn after his wife shopped him to the police, a court has heard.

Wayne Gallagher's wife went to a police station after finding inappropriate video clips of the girl on the SD card from his digital camera after they had had a row.

Three days later, on June 16, 2010, officers went to his home and arrested him and during a search items were seized including cameras and a laptop computer, said Zia Chaudhry, prosecuting.

When interviewed he accepted filming the teenage girl but denied it was for sexual gratification.

Liverpool Crown Court heard that the clips showed fleeting images of the victim, including undressing and briefly being naked.

When his laptop was analysed a total of 49 indecent images of children aged about 11, mainly in the least serious category, were found. He admitted downloading the images and then deleting them.

"He admitted viewing adult porn but not child porn. He said he might have accidentally gone onto the sites but did not intend to view any of the images," said Mr Chaudhry.

Wayne, of Chorley Way, Bromborough, pleaded guilty to three voyeurism and six of downloading indecent images.

Patrick Thompson, defending, said that Gallagher, who has no previous convictions, remorsefully accepts he has a problem.

Repercussions include the end of his marriage and the loss of his job.

Judge Stephen Clarke said that if he imposed a jail sentence he would be released in a matter of weeks without any help for his problems.

He sentenced him to six months’ imprisonment suspended for two years and ordered him to attend the challenging Northumbria Sex Offenders Programme. He also ordered him to sign the Sex Offenders Register for ten years and imposed a Sexual Offences Prevention Order.

The judge warned him if he breaches any of the orders he would go to jail.

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