A SEX offender who admitted 32 counts of making or distributing child porn pictures has been told a prison sentence is ‘almost inevitable’.

Ashley Mark Yard, 26, broke down in tears in the dock when he admitted the string of charges at a hearing at Dorchester Crown Court.

Yard, of Cocklands, Charminster, began weeping as the long list of offences, committed between January 1, 2007 and April 12, 2008, was read out in court.

Smartly dressed in a shirt and tie, Yard dabbed at his eyes with a tissue as the court heard that he had made or distributed hundreds of sick images of children on his computer.

Seven of the charges relate to 22 level five images found on Yard’s hard drive – the most serious classification for child porn pictures.

Yard pleaded guilty to 32 charges of making or distributing indecent photos of children graded between the lower end level one and level five.

His record of shame includes making or distributing 19 level four images and 12 level three images.

Another of the charges relates to 114 level one images found at Yard’s home, Judge Roger Jarvis was told.

Most of the charges relate to activity between January 2007 and April 2008 but some of them relate to specific dates.

On June 8, 2007 and June 18, 2007, Yard distributed separate level five photos of a child, the court heard.

After admitting the offences Yard was immediately placed on the sex offenders register.

When he returned to court to be sentenced Yard’s barrister Peter Asteris revealed his client had missed an appointment with the Probation Service for a pre-sentence report to be prepared.

Mr Asteris said the defendant and several members of his family had been struck down by food poisoning on the day he was due to meet with a probation officer.

Judge Christopher Harvey Clark accepted Mr Asteris’s request for sentencing to be adjourned for Yard to attend a rearranged appointment with the Probation Service.

The judge said: “The almost inevitable sentence of the court, given the gravity of the offences, is a custodial sentence.”

Yard was released on conditional bail and will return to court to be sentenced on August 20.

His bail conditions are not to contact two witnesses in the case and not to access the internet.