Shaun Dregmans freed after pleading guilty to possessing child abuse material

A Sydney hospitality worker was caught up in the dark web of child abuse videos in a desperate attempt to impress a Grindr hook-up.

WARNING: Graphic

A hospitality worker who was arrested in dramatic scenes during a dawn raid of his home after being sent a video containing child abuse material has avoided being sent to prison.

Shaun Daniel Dregmans was arrested by the Australian Federal Police in March last year after a raid on his north shore home linked him to the country’s largest child sex abuse network.

The 32-year-old faced the NSW District Court on Friday for sentence after he pleaded guilty to possessing or controlling child abuse material by use of a carriage service.

Officers from Operation Arkstone raided Dregmans’ home at Willoughby on March 17 and found a video of an underage boy performing oral sex on his phone, the court was told.

Dregmans had met a man from the gay dating app Grindr in the Sydney suburb of Chatswood in January last year who then sent him a video of child abuse material on WhatsApp.

Shaun Dregmans was arrested in March last year and pleaded guilty to possessing child abuse material. Picture: Supplied

When the man messaged about how he liked to perv, Dregmans responded “that’s so hot”, the court was told.

In the WhatsApp conversation, the court was told that Dregmans “expressed his sexual fantasies in graphic terms”, said he liked “showing my c**k to cute boys … especially pools n (sic) beach change rooms” and “going to public pools and seeing younger guys” in their Speedos.

Dregmans was asked if he wanted to watch incest, bestiality and child abuse videos with the man, to which he replied: “I was hoping you’d say that.”

Evidence tendered to the court revealed Dregmans told the man he had never watched child abuse videos but had “always wanted to”.

The court was told that Dregmans was attracted to the man from Grindr and felt the sex talk would “facilitate further sexual activity with him” and had no interest in child pornography.

When questioned by his defence barrister Riyad El-Choufani at a sentence hearing earlier this month, the 32-year-old said he was “totally repulsed” and “disappointed” with what he said.

Dregmans was released on a recognisance order after being sentenced to two years imprisonment. Picture: AFP

Reading through the conversation, Dregmans said he felt “nauseous” because “it’s not who I am … it’s not a representation of who I am”.

Judge Alister Abadee told the court that during his testimony the 32-year-old said he was “just going along with what” the man from Grindr was saying.

“He had nephews and nieces and was ashamed that he may have been privy to the exploitation of children. The facts that he agreed to were described by the offender as ‘not who I am’,” the judge said.

Dregmans admitted to watching a child abuse video with the Grindr hook-up and never deleted it as it “got buried under other apps”.

Judge Abadee said Dregmans had taken full responsibility for his offending and felt both ashamed and embarrassed over what he said in the conversation.

Dregmans told the court he was regretful over his offending. Picture: Odessa Blain

“The offending was objectively at the low end of the scale of seriousness,” Mr Abadee said.

“He presents otherwise as a person of good character with good prospects of rehabilitation and is at a low risk of reoffending; he has already suffered some extra-curial punishment flowing from adverse media reporting which meets any requirement for retribution.”

Dregmans was convicted and sentenced to a term of two years imprisonment but was released immediately upon entering a recognisance release order with a $5000 surety.

He is to be of good behaviour for four years, receive psychological counselling, is subject to the supervision of a probation officer and is not allowed to travel interstate or overseas without written permission.