Adam Stevens: Bus driver who allegedly let 16-year-old boy operate vehicle hit with child abuse material charges

A bus driver who allegedly let a 16-year-old boy take the wheel with passengers on board is also facing unrelated charges of possessing child abuse material, a court has heard.

A bus driver who allegedly let a 16-year-old boy operate a bus has been slapped with unrelated charges of possessing child abuse material.

Adam Stevens, 25, pleaded guilty to four charges and not guilty to a further four offences related to the bus incident when he appeared in Sutherland Local Court on Thursday.

It can be revealed Stevens has also been charged with two counts of possessing child abuse material.

Documents tendered to court said police alleged Stevens obtained the child abuse material via Instagram and his home Wi-Fi on his Apple laptop on two occasions.

Police allege he found the material between 2.30pm on January 10 and 11am on April 8 this year.

Stevens is yet to enter pleas to those serious allegations.

Bus driver Adam Stevens, who allegedly let a 16-year-old drive his bus on four occasions, has appeared at Sutherland Local Court. Picture: Ashleigh Tullis

Meanwhile, Stevens pleaded guilty to four counts of employing a never licensed person to drive a motor vehicle.

Police alleged Stevens allowed the teenager to drive a bus, despite the boy not being licensed to operate the large vehicle, on four occasions in March while members of the public were on board.

Those incidents occurred between 2.30pm and 7pm on March 10; between 5.24pm and 8.15pm on March 17; on March 22 between 3.40pm and 7.40pm; and between 12.08pm on March 27 and 1.17am on March 28, all at Kingsgrove.

Stevens has pleaded not guilty to four charges of negligently or wilfully driving or causing a vehicle to be moved or driven subject to a person being at risk at Kingsgrove.

Police allege those incidents occurred during the same time periods and on the same four dates in March as the other allegations.

Bus driver Adam Stevens has been charged with possessing child abuse material. Picture: Ashleigh Tullis

Police began investigating the alleged incidents after receiving reports from the public.

Officers arrested Stevens at his Menai home on March 30 before he was taken to Sutherland Police Station and charged.

In court, defence lawyer Emmanuel Apokis sought a hearing date for the four defended charges.

He said the hearing was not likely to take more than one hour, with Magistrate Philip Stewart noting there would have to be agreed facts provided to the court so the issues in the hearing could be easily addressed.

Adam Stevens was arrested in March after police began investigating the alleged bus incidents. Picture: Facebook

The hearing will be held on March 9, after which Stevens is likely to be sentenced for the other charges.

The child abuse material charges were adjourned to August 18 for police to provide an updated brief to the defence team.

Stevens is excused from attending Sutherland Local Court on that day.