Labour Parliamentary candidate for Cheadle (Cheshire), Paul Diggert, Subject of a 2002 police investigation into the alleged procurement of underage girls for sexual purposes via internet chatrooms. Diggert had admitted to having four underage girls that he was 'grooming' for sex.
Diggert, Labour Party Councillor Candidate & School Governor, was convicted of making and distributing indecent pictures of children.
DISGRACED parliamentary candidate Paul Diggett is facing expulsion from the Labour Party and a possible jail sentence after he used an MP's computer to trawl the internet for under-age girls.
But his Angry Mother this week blasted the Media for reporting the case, and claimed it was "a fuss about nothing".
Former school governor Diggett, 35 at the time of his trial, who lived with his parents in Cheadle, pleaded guilty to making and distributing indecent pictures of children.
Diggett, who stood for Labour as a Parliamentary candidate for Cheadle in 1997, was a Researcher to Labour MP James Purnell, a close ally of Tony Blair.
After losing in the 1997 General Election, Diggett went on to run the victorious 2001 election campaign for Mr Purnell, in Hyde.
Diggett was suspended after the scandal broke and he subsequently quit. He then resigned from the governing bodies of Kingsway School and Brookhead Primary, Cheadle.
At Manchester's Minshull Street Crown Court on Monday, Diggett pleaded guilty to four charges of making and distributing indecent pictures and pseudo photographs of children between February and October 2002. He was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register and remanded on bail until sentencing in March.
His defence counsel Tom Fitzpatrick claimed the indecent pictures were in the 'lower category' of seriousness. However, Judge Adrian Smith told Diggett "All sentencing options are open."
Councillor Tom McGee, leader of Stockport's Labour Group, said "We are all shocked at the behaviour of Paul Diggett and find it regrettable he was appointed school governor. Obviously had there been any prior knowledge of Mr Diggett's actions he would not have been put forward."
Ian Tunnard, headteacher at Kingsway, added "When the allegations against Mr Diggett first appeared Mr Diggett was suspended. We reassured parents that Mr Diggett had no opportunity to meet with pupils. All potential school governors are now subject to stringent checks by the Criminal Records Bureau."
James Purnell had no comment to make yesterday. However, Diggett's mother leapt to her son's defence claiming "a big thing had been made out of nothing".
Mrs Krystyna Diggett accused the media of "spreading lies" about her son, who was first exposed in November 2002 during an investigation by an undercover Sunday newspaper reporter posing on the internet as a 12-year-old girl.
Diggert was jailed for 2 years and 8 months.