Dylan Holland: Ross Creek man viewed, distributed child abuse material

A Ross Creek man who used the online handle ‘addicted2cuties’ to receive, view, and solicit child abuse material has been sentenced in court.

A Ross Creek man’s family and partner kissed him goodbye as he was led from the witness box following his imprisonment for at least a year.

With his family in the gallery, Dylan Holland, 24, appeared in Ballarat County Court on Friday for sentencing, having pleaded guilty to viewing and spreading child abuse material involving children as young as three.

During an earlier hearing, the court heard a 17-page summary of his offending, which occurred between July and October in 2020.

It detailed conversations Holland had on Telegram and Twitter related to child abuse material.

With the online handles ‘addicted2cuties’ and ‘kiddie lover’, Holland dealt with 36 child abuse material files, and possessed or controlled 28 himself.

Dylan Holland was sentenced in Ballarat County Court on October 28, 2022 for charges related to child abuse material. Photo: Facebook

In one Telegram chat with an unknown person, Holland received eight such videos.

They depicted the rape of children and other sexual acts involving minors.

Holland solicited more material, making specific requests.

Holland’s Twitter bio read “Let’s get filthy” underneath a profile picture of a female child in a bikini.

On that platform, he requested from another user pictures of “the youngest you have”.

He told another that he had no “lower age limit”, calling the child a “filthy little dirty s**t”.

Judge Bourke said it was “remarkable” that people could access such content on social media, saying it was “truly awful stuff”.

He said he had heard of cases involving a greater amount of child abuse material, but added: “I haven’t heard many cases in which the word ‘depraved’ could be as readily applied to it.

“It almost reads as if depraved rhetoric is a part of the experience: you’re not only viewing images of these unfortunate children, but you speak of them in a despicable way, which is a part of your interest.”

Police seized two phones and a desktop computer from Holland’s Ross Creek home on October 21, 2021, and arrested him.

Holland’s lawyer submitted that his client had been exposed to emotional domestic violence and pornography at a young age, and had a disorder to do with the use of cannabis.

He said Holland was intolerant of paedophilia, but felt he was doing no harm by viewing child abuse material.

Holland pleaded guilty to causing child abuse material to be transmitted to himself, transmitting child abuse material, soliciting child abuse material, accessing child abuse material, and possessing or controlling child abuse material.

During sentencing, Judge Bourke said Holland’s offending was “depraved and quite sickening in its corruption of young people”.

He accepted, however, Holland’s remorse, his good character, his youth, and his good prospects for rehabilitation.

Holland was sentenced to a total effective prison sentence of two years and six months with a Recognizance Release Order applicable after 12 months.