Whistleblower Huw Edwards asks: “How many more victims are there?”

The mother who first alerted the BBC to Huw Edwards' predatory behaviour has now expressed her shock and frustration that the newsreader was not jailed.

The whistleblower and her family contacted The Sun in July last year to complain that Edwards had sent her teenager money in exchange for sexually explicit images.

Edwards, 63, is said to have repeatedly declared his love for the teenager, among other bizarre messages.

The family felt that the BBC was not taking their concerns about Edwards seriously enough and pleaded with the BBC to get Edwards to stop sending their teenager cash because he was spending it on drugs.

Edwards reportedly transferred a total of more than £35,000 to the teenagers.

Edwards' alleged online interactions with the whistleblower's teenager were not part of the court proceedings that resulted in Edwards being sentenced to a six-month prison sentence suspended for two years after he admitted accessing indecent images of children.

The former BBC presenter had previously admitted three charges of “taking” indecent photographs after convicted paedophile Alex Williams sent him 41 illegal images via WhatsApp.

Now the mother has commented on Edwards' verdict.

“I am devastated that Edwards did not go to prison for his actions. He exploited young children for his own sick ends and should have gone to prison.”

“As a mother, I just cannot understand why anyone would share such pictures and videos,” she told The Sun.

She also expressed dismay that police had not found the phone he used to receive the child abuse images and wondered if there might be more victims that no one knows about because the phone had disappeared.

She went on to share her shock and disgust at how deeply she had thought about Edwards being in possession of illegal child abuse images while interacting with her daughter.

“When I heard that Edwards had a degrading picture of a boy as young as seven on his phone while messaging my son from the same phone, I just couldn't believe it,” she continued.

She went on to say that the judge did not do enough for Edwards in sentencing and that any “apologies” Edwards and his lawyers made for his behavior seemed insincere.

She pointed out that Edwards' claims of mental health issues and addiction were hypocritical as he had taken advantage of her son's vulnerability and addiction.

The whistleblower expressed skepticism that Edwards felt remorse, as he appeared to have no remorse for the impact his actions had on her son. She also believed that Edwards was still dangerous and should be in prison.

She said the newsreader should have been sent to prison for a “very long time” and questioned whether the sentence set a dangerous precedent for paedophiles. She asked: “Where is the deterrent?”

She also concluded: “Huw Edwards has ruined my son's life, completely ruined it.”

The disgraced BBC presenter appeared before Westminster Magistrates Court yesterday to hear his sentence.

In addition to the suspended sentence, he must complete a sex offender program and will be placed on the sex offenders' register for seven years.

After his conviction, the Criticism from the publicThe BBC issued a statement saying: “We are appalled by his crimes.”

“He has not only betrayed the BBC, but also the audience who trusted him.”

The chief magistrate, District Judge Paul Goldspring, told Edwards – who appeared emotional as he handed down the verdict – that his “long-earned reputation was in tatters”, although he had “previously been of good character”.

The judge refused to issue a restraining order to prevent sexual violence against Edwards.

A psychiatric report referred to by the judge concluded that Edwards posed a “significant risk of harm from others” and that if detained, the risk that he would take his own life was “high and substantial”.

The judge also said that the presenter posed no danger to the public or children, which earned him public criticism.

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