A convicted rapist who filmed himself subjecting his vulnerable victim to hours of repeated sadistic sexual abuse is seeking to retain some of his seized devices.

The judge sentencing Richard Morland to a 22-year custodial sentence at Teesside Crown Court in December described his sickening offending as some of the worst she had witnessed, having viewed some of the disturbing footage filmed by the defendant.

Morland, now 47, was said to have also broken into the home of another woman in the early hours of New Year's Day and waited for several hours in the hope she would return, but eventually gave up, leaving with some of her underwear.

Judge Jo Kidd labelled Morland a “dangerous offender” as she passed the total 27-year sentence, including the 22-year custodial element followed by five years extended licence period, on December 1.

The Northern Echo: Hearing at Durham Crown Court to resolve which devices rapist Richard Morland should be deprived of

She told the defendant: “This is one of the most perverted, sadistic, expressions of violence towards a woman that I have ever seen.”

Morland, of Queen Street, Shildon, admitted several rapes on the same victim, plus trespass with intent to commit a sexual act, for the New Year break-in at a property in Newton Aycliffe.

The Northern Echo:

Apart from the long custodial term he was also made subject of registration and notification as a sex offender, restraining orders, plus a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, all indefinitely.

A forfeiture order was made for any devices used in making and storing the offending video footage.

The case came back before Judge Kidd, now sitting at Durham Crown Court, for a schedule of those devices to be brought before the court.

She pointed out that any devices to be formally retained by the Crown should now be made as a deprivation order rather than a confiscation order, which has mistakenly been the case in many previous cases.

Christopher Rose, for the Crown, told the court yesterday (Wednesday, March 6) that the lead officer in the case has now identified 28 separate devices, including phones, personal computers and hard drives seized during the investigation.

But, Mr Rose said the officer has indicated that the police do not have the capacity to examine all of those devices to see which contain any indecent material and which do not.

He said, however, that all those devices which investigators have been able to examine, so far, did contain indecent images.

Judge Kidd said she would like a schedule to be prepared to indicate which devices contained the offending imagery, out of the 28 seized.

She said Morland’s defence representatives would have to make submissions as to which of those devices contain other material not considered indecent, which the defendant would like to retain.

“Until that schedule is drawn up, we can’t really move much further forward,” said Judge Kidd.

Mr Rose added: “The difficulty is that will leave a large number of devices, probably the majority, which haven’t been examined.”

The judge added: “We need to get to the point where these devices are identified so Mr Morland can make submissions about them.

“But, until they are identified, we are just in a sea of uncertainty, aren’t we?”

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She asked the Crown to upload the requested schedule of devices by March 27.

The defence should then make written submissions in response to identify which, if any of them, they assert should not be subject of a deprivation order, and the reason why in each case.

The judge said a hearing would then be arranged to settle which can, or which should not be made subject of a deprivation order, at the court in early May.