Marco Salzedo – Aylsham

2026 – Senior civil servant sentenced for child abuse images

A senior civil servant who was involved in the government’s Covid response has been spared jail over the possession of sex abuse images of young boys.

Marco Salzedo, 59, held the role of director of commercial and contract management capability, based in the Cabinet Office, and was the interim government chief commercial officer.

However, away from Whitehall and living in Norfolk his private life hid a dark secret, downloading and collecting hundreds of explicit images and videos of young boys depicting some in obvious distress.

Norwich Magistrates’ Court was told his offending had taken place over four years from 2021 until he was arrested in April 2025.

Salzedo, of Burgh Road in Aylsham, pleaded guilty to three offences of making indecent images of children and one of possession of illegal extreme pornography that featured dogs.

Prosecutors said the pictures and videos were discovered on two Motorola Moto G14 and GPlay phones found in his bedroom during a police search of his £500,000 new-build detached house.

The images included 139 category A images and videos – the most serious that involve sex acts and penetration – together with 69 category B and 104 category C.

Salzedo was sentenced to a 12 month community order with requirements including a programme to address his offending and 120 hours of unpaid work.

He was also placed on the sex offender’s register for five years while a further hearing on March 3 will determine whether he is made subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

District Judge Matthew Bone said: “You were a man of good character but there was something you were doing in private that was utterly wrong. You were looking at images of children being sexually abused.”

He said the lust for such images from sex offenders like Salzedo caused youngsters to be abused to produce indecent images and videos that were then distributed online.

Following his sentencing, a Cabinet Office spokesman said: “The individual was suspended after arrest. His employment with the Civil Service has since been terminated.”

Salzedo had been responsible for developing commercial and contract management skills with the Cabinet Office, some of whose staff are based in Norwich.

He was also involved in the government’s response to the Covid pandemic including the roll out of the test and trace scheme, and oversaw an initiative aimed at training civil servants in managing contracts.

Since his arrest he has become the director of management supply chain consultancy ViSMA, which was registered with Companies House in November 2025.