Ex-BBC host gets suspended sentence for indecent images

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Huw Edwards, ex-host of the broadcaster's flagship news program, had pleaded guilty to receiving indecent images of children. There was an outcry over Edwards continuing to receive salary payments following his arrest.

Huw Edwards, the long-time face of the BBC's flagship news show, was given a suspended sentence on Monday after admitting to making indecent images of children.

Edwards, 63, pleaded guilty in July to three indecency charges. The charges were related to 41 illegal images he was sent via WhatsApp, which included two sexual abuse videos of a child between the ages of seven and nine years old. Edwards was not accused of having made the material.

Judge Paul Goldspring gave Edwards a six-month jail sentence that is suspended for two years, meaning he will only go to prison if he commits another crime in that time.

"It is not an exaggeration to say your long-earned reputation is in tatters," Goldspring said.

Following the revelations about Edwards, there was an outcry against the BBC when it became clear that they had continued to receive his 200,000 pound ($263,000) salary for five months after being arrested in November 2023.

The BBC is largely funded by taxpayers. It has asked Edwards to return those payments.