Karl Shuttleworth, a 60-year-old man from Poulshot near Devizes, has been sentenced to three years in prison for multiple child sexual offences. In addition, he has been permanently banned from working with children and vulnerable adults.
Shuttleworth pleaded guilty in December to charges including attempting to cause or incite a female child to engage in sexual activity, trying to obtain sexual images from a child under 13, facilitating child sex offences, and attempting to engage in sexual communication with children.
Previously employed in a role involving vulnerable children, Shuttleworth secretly used the internet to seek sexual encounters with individuals he believed to be minors. Wiltshire Police’s Child Internet Exploitation Team arrested him in September 2024 after uncovering his online activities targeting children as young as 12.
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At Salisbury Crown Court on February 23, Shuttleworth was handed a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and fined court costs, along with the prison term. Detective Constable Jason Walsh, leading the investigation, described Shuttleworth as a “predator” whose online behavior demonstrated a clear sexual interest in children, posing a serious danger given his former access to vulnerable youth.
Thanks to the dedicated efforts of law enforcement, Shuttleworth will now face the consequences for his actions and remain barred from any position involving children or vulnerable adults for life.