Cairns crime: Konstantinos Stathopoulos pleads guilty to seven charges on child abuse material

A man who pleaded guilty to multiple charges relating to online videos and images of child abuse argued it was a strategy to access “daddies” for cybersex, Cairns District Court heard.

A Cairns man who saved “horrific” and “depraved” links to 13,744 images and videos of child abuse material has been sentenced in Cairns District Court.

Konstantinos Stathopoulos, 36, pleaded guilty to two charges of using a carriage service to access child abuse material, three charges of transmitting child abuse material and two charges of possessing or controlling child abuse material.

Commonwealth prosecutor Chris Moore told the court a search in July 2021 revealed Stathopoulos had images and videos stored on his iPhone and laptop and that he used a social media chat app called Kik to actively seek child abuse material.

“He would join groups then have one-on-one private chats with people,” Mr Moore said.

He said the material was “horrific” and “depraved” and there was evidence that Stathopoulos watched child abuse material while simultaneously masturbating with other people online.

He joined 20 Kik groups linked to child abuse material, Mr Moore said.

Judge Tracy Fantin said the child abuse material Stathopoulos possessed and shared was of a “very grave” nature. Picture: file photo

“He would send images and video of child abuse material, or graphically describe acts he claimed he had performed on children, or wanted to perform on children,” Mr Moore said.

“He sent texts to 11 different people which met the definition of child abuse material.”

He said Stathopoulos saved eight links into a calendar app that had 13,744 images or videos of child abuse material.

Mr Moore said Stathopoulos received material from 15 different users and tended to receive material after he had sent it.

There were 440 images and 57 videos on Stathopoulos’s iPhone and laptop.

Mr Moore said Stathopoulos failed to acknowledge he had a sexual interest in children.

Defence barrister Michael Dalton argued Stathopoulos became withdrawn following a HIV diagnosis in March 2019 and was using the child abuse material to engage in cybersex with gay men, and that he sought “daddies” online.

He stopped seeing a psychiatrist in 2020, his “life started to deteriorate” and he started using methamphetamine, Mr Dalton said.

He said there was a reference in a text to Stathopoulos becoming aroused after “slamming”, referring to injecting meth.

“By March 2021 he is engaging in a path of self-destruction using drugs and this facade online to seek our men who he was attracted to, categorised as ‘daddies’, and he would use the child abuse material to meet these men and have cybersex, which was his outlet, because he was withdrawn,” Mr Dalton said.

Mr Dalton said Stathopoulos used Zoom on his laptop to show images and videos to another.

“His sexual gratification at that point is the other person becoming aroused,” Mr Dalton said.

“He engaged in appalling conversations while high, it doesn’t excuse the behaviour but it gives your honour insight into a really complicated offending matrix,” he said.

Judge Tracy Fantin asked whether it mattered.

Children aged from six months to 15 years were depicted in images and videos that fit the definition of child abuse material and were particularly disturbing. Picture: file photo

“You would say it goes to the risk of reoffending, that it was frankly an extremely elaborate ruse to get access to gay men on the internet, it does not seem to matter when assessing the objective gravity of the offending,” she said.

He used the name kinkyman.au and posted full body pictures, joining 20 groups, Judge Fantin noted.

“The names of the groups made it patently obvious that is what the group was directed toward, including references to daughters and incest as well as fathers and sexual activity.

“You had one-on-one chats exchanging material and speaking in graphic detail about s

She said he claimed a picture of a naked toddler was his four-year-old daughter and described acts he had performed and wished to perform on her.

He sent “very grave” material to 79 Kik users depicting erotically-posed children aged from four to 15 years and his own devices had 440 images and 57 videos.

Judge Fantin said the material included the anal, vaginal and oral rape of children from six months to 15 years of age and he used graphic and enthusiastic descriptions.

“I have no doubt they suffered physical harm,” Judge Fantin said.

She gave a head sentence of three years and one month with a non-parole period of 14 months.

Originally published as Cairns crime: Konstantinos Stathopoulos pleads guilty to seven charges on child abuse material