An East Sussex man has been jailed for 15 months after he admitted dealing in child pornography over the internet.

Supermarket worker Anthony Smith, 54, of High Street, Mayfield, near Crowborough, was raided by Sussex Police after a tip-off about his activities from the Metropolitan force.

Lewes Crown Court heard Smith emailed pictures to his online contacts in exchange for their images.

When police raided his home they found more than 6,000 pornographic images stored on his computer.

Some were described as 'top-shelf' material but a large number were indecent pictures of children involved in sex acts.

Smith, 54, claimed he had been a victim of abuse and was using his computer to track down paedophiles. But he never contacted detectives, said Peter Teager, prosecuting.

Smith admitted four charges of making indecent photos by printing images off his computer and seven charges of distributing indecent photos.

David Newberry, defending, said: "At no time were any of these images distributed for financial gain."

Sentencing him, Judge Guy Anthony, said: "Those who download disgusting pictures of children help to perpetuate the trade in these images, which causes misery for these children."

Judge Anthony ordered that the computer be confiscated and Smith sign the sex offenders register for the next ten years.