11:01am UK, Wednesday May 21, 2008

The former partner of Shannon Matthews's mother has been remanded in custody for a further seven days after appearing before magistrates on child pornography charges.

Accused: Craig Meehan

Craig Meehan, 22, faced Dewsbury Magistrates' Court accused of possessing 140 indecent images of children.

The pictures were allegedly found on a computer at the home he shared with Karen Matthews.

Meehan denies the charges and will stand trial at a later date.

The supermarket fishmonger is accused of 11 specimen offences of possession of indecent images of children.

It is alleged that Meehan possessed indecent images of children aged between four and 16, graded at levels one to four - on a scale where one is the least serious and five the most.

It is claimed they were on one of two computers at the family home in Dewsbury Moor, where he lived with Matthews, 32, for around five years.

:: Shannon went missing on February 19 and was discovered hidden in the base of a bed in a flat just one mile from her home after a 24-day search by police.

Meehan's uncle Michael Donovan, 39, of Lidgate Gardens, Batley Carr, has been charged with Shannon's kidnap and imprisonment.

He will go on trial at Leeds Crown Court on November 11 alongside Karen Matthews, who is charged with child neglect and perverting the course of justice.