Lismore: Liam Michael Tubby in court on child abuse and bestiality material charges

A former Telstra worker charged with possessing, transmitting, and accessing more than 6800 images of child abuse and bestiality material claims he did it because he was blackmailed.

Lismore Courthouse. Photo Cathy Adams / The Northern Star

A former Lismore Telstra retail worker charged with possessing, transmitting, and accessing more than 6800 images of child abuse and bestiality material said he did it because he was blackmailed over an explicit nude picture of himself.

Liam Michael Tubby, 24, appeared before Judge Jonathan Priestley in Lismore District Court on Tuesday.

He has pleaded guilty to use carriage service transmit/publish/promote child abuse, use carriage service to access child abuse material, and possess/control child abuse material-use carriage service.

Also use carriage service to solicit child pornography and person possesses bestiality material.

Tubby told the court he didn’t go to police or tell his family a man had threatened to release his nude picture online out of “shame and embarrassment”.

Thousands of images were possessed, accessed, and transmitted by the accused, a court heard.

An avid online gamer, Tubby was also using Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Tik Tok, Yubo, Telegram, online social platform Discord, an onlyfans site, and a cloud data storage account on Mega.NZ on his computer and iPhone.

Tubby said he created the Mega.NZ account after 2018 to store games and later his adult pornography collection.

A man claims he was being blackmailed into possessing, transmitting and accessing child abuse material.

Tubby told the court he received a Mega.NZ link via Snapchat on his iPhone while online gaming.

“I opened it on the Mega app and that’s when I realised it was the abusive material.

“I don’t know who sent me the link.”

He said he was then blackmailed by a man known to him who threatened to expose an illicit nude picture of him online if he didn’t hold and share abuse content when required.

“He would send me usernames content was to be sent to. It’d be on Snapchat and disappear as soon as I'd looked at it,” he said.

Anonymous links and usernames were sent across a variety of apps.

Tubby took the username from Snapchat and put it in Telegram with a message “hey, they say you know what I'm after”, before sending the material, the court heard.

Crown prosecutor Edward McGuiness said Tubby set up a Mega account on July 10, 2019, and stored illegal material, including 6800 files, which he accessed multiple times, but defence barrister Ben Cochrane said it is unclear how Tubby obtained the material.

The Crown said he received a link while gaming, which led to the accumulation of the material, but Mr Cochrane argued there was no evidence of continuous accumulation or active seeking of such material.

Tubby claims he was blackmailed into transmitting material, which the defense argued reduces his moral culpability but the Crown said this was implausible, saying Tubby had “ample time” to report the blackmail but continued offending instead.

Tubby’s late diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) was discussed as a factor influencing his actions and decision-making, with Mr Cochrane saying ASD complicated his ability to assess situations and respond appropriately.

The Crown argued Tubby’s sexual interest in children was the motivation for the offending and that he was not “playing a passive role”.

The Crown asserted that Tubby’s actions were motivated by sexual gratification, pointing to his possession and interaction with the material, but Mr Cochrane said there was no clear evidence of sexual interest, and Tubby did not actively share the material.

“From July 10, 2019 he at least had seven images and later the Mega account from October 4, 2022 to February 5, 2023. There were accesses on those dates,” Mr McGuiness said.

The Crown criticised Tubby’s claims of remorse and insight, citing reports saying he lacked understanding of the impact of his offending.

Mr Cochrane highlighted Tubby’s co-operation with authorities and lack of prior criminal record.

The judge remarked on the complexities of the case, adjourning it one week before he will hand down his judgment on May 2.

Got a news tip? Email [e-mail]

Originally published as Lismore: Liam Michael Tubby in court on child abuse and bestiality material charges