A former high school teacher has been jailed after taking more than a million upskirt images of pupils using secret cameras concealed in pens.
Matthew Gilkes, 47, was apprehended after being caught photographing children under cubicles at a leisure centre in Chorley, Lancashire, in August 2024.
Police traced his vehicle, leading to his arrest.
A search of his home and workplace uncovered over 80 devices, including a school-issued laptop, spy pens, handheld cameras, and memory cards containing numerous indecent images of children. Many of these images were of pupils from his own school.
It was also discovered he set up fake social media accounts to pose as a teenage boy to groom and manipulate girls to send indecent images and videos of themselves.
On Friday, Gilkes, who taught at a high school in Greater Manchester, was jailed at Preston Crown Court for 16 years and told he must serve an additional five years on licence.
He pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to various offences including operating equipment beneath clothing without consent, engaging in sexual communication with a child and possessing indecent images of children.
Gilkes, formerly of Harrison Road, Chorley, was also given an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.
Following sentencing, Detective Constable Holly McClave said: “Matthew Gilkes is a highly dangerous man who has shown persistent, predatory behaviour towards young girls who he has taken advantage of, groomed and exploited for his own sexual gratification.
“The victims in this case have shown incredible bravery in speaking about what happened to them and I commend them for their courage. I hope this sentence gives them some sense that justice has been done.”
Stacey Gosling, senior crown prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “He gave no thought to the lasting damage his abuse would have on young victims and, when caught by police, was found to have a staggering number of indecent images showing his depraved offending knew no limits.”
