Shane Atkinson called himself ‘Insano Shano’ as he coaxed teens into sending him explicit images

A Maffra tradie who called himself ‘Insano Shano’ on Snapchat has avoided jail after showering girls as young as 13 with cash, alcohol and expensive sneakers in exchange for nude images.

Shane Atkinson was sentenced to a 12-month community corrections order. Picture: Supplied

A “lonely” Maffra tradie who plied schoolgirls as young as 13 years old with cash, alcohol and even expensive sneakers in exchange for nude images has avoided jail.

Shane Atkinson, 22, called himself ‘Insano Shano’ as he chatted with teenage girls on Snapchat and coaxed them into sending him explicit images.

Atkinson messaged at least five girls, aged 13 to 15, during 2019 on the app before a concerned mum saw one of the messages and raised the alarm.

The County Court last week heard he supplied two teens, aged 13 to 14, with slabs of sugary alcoholic drinks, a bottle of vodka and $40 after they sent him photos of themselves in their underwear.

He also handed his credit card details over to one of the girls after receiving the images, so she could purchase Nike sneakers.

Another girl, aged 14, found out he had been paying teens for nude images and offered to send him extremely explicit photos and videos in exchange for cash.

Over the course of an entire year, he would pay her up to $1000 for the content.

Atkinson was found guilty of involving a child in the production of child abuse material.

Judge Kellie Blair said sexual offending against children was not lessened by “consent” or “initiation on behalf of the child”.

The court heard another girl, aged 14 to 15, sent Atkinson a picture of Adidas runners which prompted him to buy them for her.

Months after dropping them off at her friend’s house, he asked the teen to send him nude photos of herself but she refused.

The painter, aged between 18 and 19 at the time of the offending, was found guilty by a jury of three charges of involving a child in the production of child abuse material and two charges of attempting to involve a child in the production of child abuse material.

While some of the girls were not completely naked in the photos, the jury ruled the images still constituted child abuse material.

During a pre-sentence hearing, the prosecutor argued Atkinson lacked remorse because he pleaded not guilty and took the case to trial as he felt the victims had “tricked him”.

“It’s a fairly common thing what I’ve done,” he said during his assessment for a community corrections order.

“Everyone is doing it. Sharing nudes happens daily. It’s weird if you haven’t done it.”

The prosecutor called for the sex offender to be sentenced to a term of imprisonment, especially given the charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment.

However, the painter was last week sentenced to a 12-month community corrections order.

Judge Blair told Atkinson he has “excellent” prospects for rehabilitation given his stable work, strong community connections and low risk of reoffending.

He has been ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid community work.

Atkinson will be a registered sex offender for life.