Tristan Paul Boyle pleads guilty to accessing, possessing child abuse material

A sex offender busted with child abuse material – including a 59-minute video – told police he wanted to live a “normal life”, as his lawyer argued he should avoid jail.

Tristan Paul Boyle leaving Geelong Magistrates Court on Thursday.

The lawyer for a registered sex offender caught with child abuse material asked a court not to jail his client because of a broken finger, as a magistrate described the offending as “revolting and disgusting”.

Tristan Boyle, 43, appeared in Geelong Magistrates Court on Thursday and pleaded guilty to three charges, accessing and possessing child abuse material (CAM) and failing to comply with his reporting obligations.

Boyle, who appeared in court with his arm in a sling due to a broken finger, was supported by his parents in court.

His lawyer, Codey Larkin, argued Boyle would be vulnerable in custody due to his injury.

Boyle was spared prison, but not because of his finger – which magistrate Simon Guthrie said was the “least of his worries”.

Boyle was convicted and sentenced to a 30-month community corrections order (CCO).

Police prosecutor Senior Constable Emma Morse told the court Police raided the home Boyle was living in January last year, seizing a Dell laptop and a USB stick.

The USB stick contained a child abuse video that was 59 minutes long, the court heard.

The laptop had two partitions, with one running a Windows operating system and the other, which required decryption, running Linux.

The court heard the police found evidence that the Windows partition was used to access child abuse material via a USB, while several child abuse files were found on the Linux partition.

When interviewed by police about the material, Boyle said he was “surprised” and that he just wanted “to be a normal person and live a normal life”.

The court also heard that Boyle created an Instagram account with the username “digitalslave” in August last year, but failed to report the new account to police within seven days.

Boyle was placed on the Sex Offenders Register in 2015 for offences related to child abuse material.

Boyle’s lawyer, Codey Larkin, told the court his client had had a “turbulent last decade to say the least”, characterised by drug and alcohol abuse, mismanagement of mental health issues and numerous court appearances.

Since the raid, Boyle has sought treatment, the court heard, and reduced his drug use.

Senior Constable Morse told the court Boyle’s actions were not victimless and contributed to the demand for child abuse material.

“There’s victims out there as a result of this,” she said, noting Boyle had been placed on three previous CCOs.

“It is time to step up the scale (of sentencing),” Senior Constable Morse said.

Magistrate Simon Guthrie said this type of offending was “always troubling” and said Boyle’s presentation was aggravating.

“He is a very intelligent man, he likes IT, he’s got a very relevant prior,” Mr Guthrie said.

Boyle was also fined $800 and must now register as a sex offender for life.

Originally published as Tristan Paul Boyle pleads guilty to accessing, possessing child abuse material