Pervert in court for contacting under-aged girls for nude pics

A Melbourne pervert spent five years engaging in a sick cash-for-nudes racket with under-aged children, finding his victims on Snapchat.

Robert Cairncross used Snapchat to entice under-aged girls to send him nude photos in exchange for cash.

A sports bar manager used Snapchat to befriend under-age girls and convince them to send him sexually graphic photos of themselves during a five-year span of offending described as “depraved and degenerate”.

Robert Cairncross, 25, was sentenced in the County Court on Tuesday to three years’ and 10 months’ jail after pleading guilty to a litany of child abuse material charges.

Robert Cairncross, 25, was sentenced in the County Court on Tuesday to three years’ and 10 months’ jail.

Judge Diana Manova said Cairncross’ behaviour in contacting 10 girls between the ages of 14 and 17 was deliberate, brazen and predatory.

In December last year, police executed a warrant and seized a laptop, an iPhone and two iPods that contained 243 child abuse files.

Just three months later, Cairncross began interacting with a vulnerable 15-year-old girl and Judge Manova said the tone and content of his exchange could only be described as “emotional manipulation”.

Cairncross told the girl the age difference of nine years between them didn’t bother him.

She told him on Snapchat that she struggled with her mental health, had an eating disorder and had engaged in self harm.

He said he was considering visiting her at home in regional Victoria for sex.

Cairncross called himself “Daddy” and referred to her as “Princess”.

“You encouraged her to masturbate and told her you’d tightly choke her with one hand while you did various sexual things to her with the other hand,” Judge Manova said.

“The content of that conversation shows your preparedness to introduce degrading and corrupt content to a young person whom you know to be sexually inexperienced and mentally unwell. That can only be regarded as depraved and degenerate conduct.”

Robert Cairncross offending was laid bare in the County Court.

Following that interaction, Cairncross paid a 17-year-old female $880 in exchange for photos of her breasts and buttocks.

Cairncross’ offending began with what appeared to be a legitimate attempt to contact a female who alleged she was 18 on Tinder in early January 2018.

She sent him six images that were classified as child pornography.

In 2019, Cairncross sent $677 to a 15-year-old female he linked up with on Snapchat who he referred to as”an amazingly gorgeous girl with an incredible smile”.

In another case, Cairncross communicated with a 14-year-old boy who jokingly told him he was a 14-year-old girl. Cairncross asked if she was prepared to meet up with him in exchange for money and offered to take her home for sex.

The contact stopped after the boy’s mother instructed her son to block Cairncross on Snapchat.

Judge Manova said school students often have no means of obtaining money.

“Your action towards some victims provided temptation to other young people to engage in sexualised conduct in exchange for money. This could have long term consequences for them,” he said.

The judge said Cairncross’ offending was detected when the mother of one of the girls reported to police that he had been transferring money to her daughter.

Cairncross will have to serve two years and three months in jail before being eligible for parole.