Teaching student Steven James Despotakis, 25, sentenced to home detention for possessing ‘depraved’ child abuse material

A wannabe teacher had been collecting explicit videos of children under 13 for up to two years, and had completed a school placement, a court has heard.

A former teaching student who had completed a placement at a school before police caught him with explicit images and videos of children as young as two isn’t attracted to children and was just using it for stress relief, a court has heard.

On Wednesday, the District Court heard Steven James Despotakis, 25, had been downloading child exploitation material for as long as two years before his arrest in December 2022.

In sentencing, Judge Ian Press said Despotakis had admitted to downloading the material online because he had an addiction to pornography.

“You explained (to police) that you would download it, watch it, and then delete it,” Judge Press said.

“You explained that you do not have an attraction towards young children and you identify as asexual.

“You said you downloaded it as you say you have an addiction to pornography and it is for physical release and stress.”

Despotakis pleaded guilty to one count of possessing child exploitation material, which carries a maximum sentence of 12 years’ imprisonment.

The court heard he had downloaded 260 images of children under the age of 13-years-old, and 16 images of children over 13-years-old involved in sexual activity or poses.

“Some of the images in your possession depict (sexual acts) involving babies and toddlers as young as two years old,” Judge Press said.

The court heard Despotakis had been completing a Bachelor of Science and Teaching, and had completed a teaching placement in early 2022. Judge Press said Despotakis was since aware that his conviction meant that any future as a teacher would be “unlikely”.

“Whether you were motivated by a specific sexual attraction or you were motivated by something different or darker, I am satisfied your actions were sexually motivated and that whatever guilt you felt at the time did not curtail your activities over a considerable period of time,” he said.

“It could not have escaped you that the nature of the material you were viewing was depraved and wrong.

“Child exploitation material is a serious social evil, you have contributed to the sexual exploitation of these children and the international market in such material.”

Because of his early guilty plea, Despotakis was eligible for a sentencing discount of 35 per cent.

Judge Press said that, if Despotakis hadn’t made “full and frank admissions to police”, he would have imposed a sentence of one year and ten months in prison.

That was then reduced to one year, two months and ten days on account of his plea, with a non-parole period of eight months.

He ordered that Despotakis serve the period on home detention, noting that his age, his lack of prior offending and his early admission made him a suitable candidate to serve his sentence at home.

Judge Press ordered that Despotakis provide any electronic devices to his home detention supervisor, as well as all passwords when requested.

The two mobile devices containing the child abuse material were forfeited.

Originally published as Teaching student Steven James Despotakis, 25, sentenced to home detention for possessing ‘depraved’ child abuse material