Qld coal worker Damian Ewings busted with child exploitation material

When police raided his home, a Queensland coal worker was upfront about his huge child abuse collection, saying: “I keep doing it, I keep finding it, I keep downloading it, I keep f***ing watching it.”

Damian Drew Ewings, 34, was sentenced in the District Court at Gladstone after pleading guilty to three counts of possessing child exploitation material. Generic image.

A Central Queensland coal industry worker has been sentenced after he was busted with more than 500 child abuse images and 270 videos.

Damian Drew Ewings, 34, was sentenced in the District Court at Gladstone after pleading guilty to three counts of possessing child exploitation material.

The court heard that on September 24, 2023, police executed a search warrant at Ewings’ home.

After being given his rights and cautions, Ewings said to police: “I’ll just cut this short - I’m guilty. I keep doing it, I keep finding it, I keep downloading it, I keep f***ing watching it, I can’t stop.”

Police then seized three devices from Ewings.

One of the devices, a laptop, contained nine Category One child exploitation material (CEM) items - Category One is the highest category, depicting real pubescent children under 13 years of age, and showing either sexual activity involving a child or a clear focus on the genitals or anus.

A second device, a desktop computer, contained 344 Category One CEM images, and 165 Category One CEM videos.

Also on the desktop computer were 175 Category Two images and 105 Category Two videos - Category Two is any other child exploitation material that is not Category One, including animated and written CEM.

Across the two devices there were 538 CEM images and 270 CEM videos.

The court heard that an extraction of the third device, a chromebook, failed.

Gladstone Courthouse.

Ewings, with no criminal history, was charged by police on September 24, 2023, and the court heard in the 17 months until he was sentenced this month (February, 2025) he had complied with his bail conditions and not further offended.

As part of Ewings’ bail, he was allowed access to a computer for work purposes and banking.

The court heard Ewings had good relationships with his brother and sister, with the latter writing a letter of support for him.

It was told that after finishing Year 12, Ewings had maintained continuous employment and he’d been in his current position as a coal sampler for 15 years.

The court heard since the offending, Ewings had engaged in therapy and he was committed to ongoing sessions.

It was also told that a clinical psychologist’s report said Ewings didn’t display significant problems with self-regulation or self-management.

Further, a report from a forensic psychiatrist said the many protective factors that were in place, reduced the potential for Ewings to reoffend in a similar manner.

Barrister Jordan Ahlstrand said Ewings was genuinely remorseful for his offending.

Judge Amanda McDonnell said the appropriate sentence must provide deterrence and assist with Ewings’ rehabilitation.

“I don’t propose to require actual custody - this will enable you to retain your employment and continue to engage with (your clinical psychologist),” Judge McDonnell said.

“In cases of this kind of offending, making it clear that accessing and possessing child pornography is not a victimless crime - these offences harm real children and the repeated circulation of child pornography continues the victimisation of the children in the images.

“Every child in the images you’ve accessed or downloaded was in fact harmed.

“Victims of child pornography report lifelong impacts as a result of the abuse, and by participating in it, you were re-victimising them.”

Judge McDonnell noted that any person sentenced for a child exploitation material offence must serve an actual period of incarceration unless there were “exceptional circumstances.”

She ruled in Ewings’ case, there were exceptional circumstances and she sentenced him to 12 months’ jail, wholly suspended for two years.

Judge McDonnell also placed Ewings on probation for two years with conditions.

Convictions were recorded.

Originally published as Qld coal worker Damian Ewings busted with child exploitation material