NewsBite

Paedophile caught searching for child pornography

The lawyer of a paedophile who believes he deserves the death penalty, has asked that the man be given a chance to be a ‘meaningful member of the community’.

The 53-year-old man was caught by detetctived with searches for child pornography. Picture: istock
The 53-year-old man was caught by detetctived with searches for child pornography. Picture: istock

The lawyer of a paedophile who believes he deserves the death penalty for his vile past, has asked that the man be spared jail time after he was caught searching for child pornography online.

The 53-year-old man, who has not been named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to a rolled-up charge of accessing child abuse material when he fronted the Ballarat Magistrates’ Court on Monday.

Police prosecutor Senior Constable Jack Fletcher told the court that on three separate occasions between September 30 and October 31, 2019, the man searched for child pornography.

He was busted by Ballarat detectives who went to his home and looked through his phone search history.

A data extraction of the phone by police uncovered the extent of the web searches, which included naked children and babies.

The registered sex offender admitted to his offending in his police interview and told police he understood the searches were “inappropriate” and that he wanted to go back to jail.

Defence lawyer Heidi Keighran asked magistrate Ron Saines to consider a non-custodial sentence for her client so he could become a “meaningful member of the community”, despite him being considered an “above average” risk of reoffending.

“He has no delusions about the fact that he is a paedophile and that is something he must work with on a daily basis to ensure the safety of the community,” she said.

She said the man had been diagnosed with a paedophilic disorder and had served nearly 12 years in jail for sexual offending against two children, being released in 2018.

Ms Keighran said the man had believed he deserved the death penalty for his prior offending and was glad he was the last male line on his paternal side, as other family members had also committed sexual offences against children.

The court heard the man had become “institutionalised” and had searched for the images as a way to get into trouble with the law again and be sent back to prison as he was struggling living in the community.

Ms Keighran said her client had been abused as a child.

Mr Saines said he was unable to categorise or quantify the material searched, as that information had not been provided by the prosecution.

The man, who remains on bail, will return to court in February for sentencing.

tess.ikonomou@news.com.au

Original URL: https://www.heraldsun.com.au/leader/ballarat/paedophile-caught-searching-for-child-pornography/news-story/fd1f1c7b079b4ed711424968038ba16a