Townsville: Christopher James Biffin sentenced for distributing child exploitation material

A Townsville man paid a sex worker $20 per day to send him messages, but the exchanges became disturbing when he asked her to play along with his twisted fantasy.

A “LONELY” man who asked a Townsville sex worker to pose as a teenager as part of a sexual fantasy has claimed that despite his request, he has no attraction to children.

The “unusual” case of Christopher James Biffin, 30, was finalised in Townsville District Court on Thursday after he pleaded guilty to distributing child exploitation material.

The court heard in May 2021, Biffin was paying a sex worker $20 per day to send him messages, but the exchanges became disturbing when he asked her to pretend to be a 14-year-old.

Biffin later spoke of her taking part in a fictional threesome, and mentioned the third person would be a child “the younger, the better”.

On September 4 he messaged the woman about a sexually explicit fantasy situation involving a fictional nine and 11 year old.

Christopher James Biffin, 30, asked his "internet girlfriend" to take part in a fantasy exchange where he asked her to pretend to be a teenager. He quickly donned a mask as he left the Townsville courthouse on Thursday.

“He said he wanted children to watch him shower, walk around naked …,” Crown prosecutor Shannon Sutherland said.

He later asked the woman to unsave the messages because he realised they were a “bit bad”.

Biffin was heard to have breached his bail twice this year, after he had contact with multiple children in social settings.

Police found no child abuse images on Biffin’s phone, but saw he had been searching the internet for terms including “young naked boy”.

Defence barrister Ross Malcomson noted that no actual child had been involved in Biffin’s offending.

“He cannot speak to the reasons behind this offending, he was drinking heavily during that period,” Mr Malcomson said.

“He instructs that he does not have any predilection or interest in children, but again your honour may be very suspicious of that submission in the circumstances.”

He said Biffin was employed as a cook, and now had a mental health plan and an appointment with a psychologist.

Judge John Coker said Biffin’s acts were “reprehensible”.

“They show even if it is only a fantasy or a storyline which you sought to play out, that there are issues that need to be addressed by you,” Judge Coker said.

Biffin was placed on two years’ probation with a conviction recorded.

He will be a registered sex offender for five years.

Originally published as Townsville: Christopher James Biffin sentenced for distributing child exploitation material