A former gymnastics coach from Huntingdon has been sentenced to one year and ten months in prison after admitting creating indecent images of children.
Thomas Verdicchio, 24, of Seathwaite, Huntingdon, was arrested in October 2024 following a referral from British Gymnastics. Police seized his mobile phone, iPad, and laptop, discovering two category B videos and 15 category C photographs of children. Some images had been digitally manipulated using “deep fake” technology to superimpose a child’s head onto a nude body.
Verdicchio pleaded guilty to four counts of making an indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of a child at a hearing in October. On 20 November, Cambridge Crown Court also imposed a ten-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) and ordered him to register with the police for the same period.
Detective Constable Daniel Knight, who led the investigation, said:
"Verdicchio was fully aware his actions were wrong and betrayed the trust placed in him by the community. He poses a serious threat to children, and had he not been caught, his crimes could have escalated into contact offences."
The case serves as a reminder of the vigilance required in protecting children online and in the community
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