A pervert was exposed as a drug dealer after police raided his home over indecent images of children.

During the raid of Ryan Anthony Evans’s home on Brown Street, Macclesfield, they discovered amphetamine and cannabis worth up to £2,770 and text messages showing he was dealing drugs.

Officers also found 123 indecent images of children with 27 classed to be in category A, the most serious.

He was jailed for 17 months.

The court heard that Evans told police he started dealing to pay off a drug debt. He said he was ‘getting off his head’ and looked at websites with indecent images when he hadn’t intended to, after clicking to them from adult pornography.

But recorder Mark Ford sitting at Warrington Crown Court said Evans had sought out indecent images in internet searches.

Prosecuting, Nicholas Williams said: “Police searched the defendant’s home and seized a tablet and two mobile phones.

“The defendant had been searching using an in-private browsing tab websites with names indicating they had indecent images of children.

“When officers tried to extract the data, the computer rebooted and all evidence was lost.

“But when police examined the mobile phones there was evidence of making and possessing indecent images.

“They were mainly females aged eight to fifteen and the category A [pictures] were particularly extreme.

“While there police discovered a large quantity of controlled drugs.”

Evans pleaded guilty to making and possessing indecent images and possessing extreme pornography between January 1 2012 and August 10 2016.

He also admitted intent to supply cannabis and amphetamines and possession of MDMA.

Defending, Daniel Harman, said: “It’s testament to him that there’s a large number of people in court in support of him.

“He’s willing to work with probation and it’s credit to him that he’s still in employment.”

Recorder Evans called it a ‘tragic case’ but said the two very serious matters meant immediate custody was the only option.

He said: “The people who produce these loathsome images do so because there is a market for them and that’s the motivation for exploiting children.”