AN Aberystwyth man faces jail after admitting possessing 32 indecent videos of children.

Salvatore Catalano, of 28 Pier Street, pleaded guilty before Aberystwyth magistrates last Wednesday, and will be sentenced at Swansea Crown Court after magistrates said their sentencing powers were “insufficient” for the offences.

Italian Catalano, 35, was originally charged with the making of the videos - 15 of which fell into the most serious category.

Those offences were withdrawn and replaced with the possession offences, but prosecutor Kevin Challinor told the court that it “does not reduce the seriousness” of the case.

The court was told that on 30 June last year, police officers executed a warrant at Catalano’s flat.

He was on holiday in Italy at the time, but officers seized “a number of items”, including electronic devices and a USB stick.

An examination of the USB stick, which contained some of the indecent videos, also contained Catalano’s CV, the court was told.

Catalano, who used an interpreter during proceedings, was arrested on his return from holiday but offered no comment in police interviews following his arrest.

Mr Challinor told the court that 15 videos “of the most serious type” were found, along with 10 Category B videos, and seven category C.

Aberystwyth magistrates declined jurisdiction on the case after being told the starting point for the offences was one year’s custody.

Magistrates, saying the court had “insufficent sentencing powers” in the case, sent Catalano to Swansea Crown Court for sentencing.

Catalano will be sentenced on Friday, 24 March.

He has been granted bail until the court date, with conditions that he has no unsupervised access to children, and that he is not allowed to travel abroad without the permission of the court.

Catalano was also told he must register as a sex offender with police within three days.